UK: Natural Enemies Field Reservoirs play a critical role in the management of papaya mealybug, CABI study reveals

Natural Enemies Field Reservoirs – technology created by the late CABI scientist Riaz Mahmood – play a crucial role in the sustainable management of the papaya mealybug pest according to new CABI-led research in the journal Biological Control.The researchers found that the establishment of farmer-managed Natural Enemies Field Reservoirs (NEFRs) led to an increase in the absolute and average count of the natural enemy parasitoid Acerophagous papayae used to manage the papaya mealybug (Paracoccus marginatus) in Kenya.Indeed, the rise in A. papayae populations per leaf elevated parasitism rates, leading to an overall reduction in the infestation levels of the papaya mealybug per leaf. The presence of NEFRs, the researchers argue, resulted in an increase in the type (species) and number (abundance) of predatory arthropods in the respective treatments.Severely impacts the livelihoods of smallholder farmersPapaya mealybug invaded East Africa between 2015 to 2020. The pest causes 57-91% ...