Pest control methods comprise targeted strategies and technologies used to suppress, manage, or eradicate populations of organisms considered pests in agricultural, urban, industrial, or stored-product settings. They include chemical control (synthetic or biological pesticides with defined modes of action), biological control (predators, parasitoids, pathogens), cultural practices (crop rotation, sanitation, habitat manipulation), mechanical and physical methods (traps, barriers, temperature treatments), and genetic or biotechnological approaches (sterile insect technique, transgenic crops expressing pesticidal traits). Within integrated pest management frameworks, these methods are combined and optimized based on pest biology, monitoring data, resistance management principles, and environmental and human health risk assessments.
Todd Montgomery pops the lid off a small tube and taps out hundreds of mosquitoes into the backyard of a suburban home outside Washington.
Ecology
Aug 7, 2026
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182
Researchers from Michigan State University's Department of Entomology found that automated camera traps often detected codling moth activity in orchards several days earlier than standard monitoring methods, potentially helping ...
Ecology
Aug 6, 2026
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7
Newborn German cockroaches use pheromones in cockroach feces to identify members of their own colony and form a kind of social bond, a discovery that could be used to improve pest control efforts.
Plants & Animals
Aug 5, 2026
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5
The value of basic science in insect biology is no more evident than when a crisis arises involving a devastating insect pest like the New World screwworm, says University of Illinois entomology professor May Berenbaum. In ...
Ecology
Aug 4, 2026
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10
An innovative formulation based on natural compounds could become a sustainable alternative for controlling moniliasis, one of the most devastating diseases affecting cocoa in Latin America. A new study shows that emulsions ...
Biotechnology
Jul 30, 2026
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39
Satellite-derived maps of defoliation caused by European spongy moths—a devastating U.S. forest pest that consumes the leaves of a wide variety of trees—offer a promising solution for tracking where and when to spray and ...
Ecology
Jul 30, 2026
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16
With summer comes the warmth and sunshine that wine grapes need to thrive. It also comes with more vineyard-destroying rodents. To keep vermin at bay while reducing the need for harmful pesticides, California vineyards have ...
Ecology
Jul 30, 2026
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39
Summer can be lovely—until a wasp turns up. Whether they present as an irritating picnic visitor or an uninvited attic guest, common social wasps are as much a part of our summer as festivals, sunscreen and the growing despair ...
Ecology
Jul 29, 2026
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310
Traditionally, public health programs have relied on chemicals for mosquito management, which may be why combating mosquitoes is becoming more difficult. Over time, insecticides trigger biochemical and genetic variations ...
Ecology
Jul 29, 2026
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32
Diets rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids—a type of fat that supports brain function, cell growth and heart health—may help protect honey bees against the toxic effects of pesticides, according to a study led by researchers ...
Plants & Animals
Jul 28, 2026
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