Augmentative biological control of stink bugs on soybean: the Brazilian scenario

Abstract

Augmentative Biological Control (ABC) is one of the essential strategies for building a more sustainable agriculture, especially in commodities such as soybean, where the overuse of insecticides has been the subject of much concern over the last years. Due to its high potential for parasitism, the egg parasitoid Telenomus podisi has been considered one of the main ABC agents of stink bugs, especially Euschistus heros, one of the major pests of soybean in South America. In this context, this article presents a review of the current situation of ABC against stink bugs with T. podisi. Despite promising results, it should be taken into account that parasitoids are fragile organisms of small size, and biotic and abiotic factors can negatively impact their parasitism efficacy. Thus, we present published results with T. podisi to introduce a more sustainable management of stink bugs and discuss the existing challenges related to the correct adoption of T. podisi in ABC programs which need more attention in order to reach the greatest potential benefits.