Question #efe90
1 Answer
Some insects can be useful for agricutur. Pheromones are molecules that are used by many annimals to comunicate and some may draw useful insects to the culturs.
Explanation:
Some insect are used as polinators , wich mean that they help plants reproduction by visiting the plants. Indeed they come on the flower to feed themselfs and pollen get attache to the visiting insect and might be deposit on an other flower nearby.
Cycle of polination with the help of a polinator:
among those polinator we can find the very known bees, butterfly but also beetle, flies and any insects that use flower.
Some insect are also lure to the fileds due to their predator or parasitic behavior. Indeed they are many differents pest attacking crops. Some of them suffer from attack by other insects and brigging those with pheromones could help fight the pest.
For example ladybug that feed on aphids is a good example of helping insects
A ladybug feeding on aphids that are attaking the plant:
An other good example are the use of parasitic insect that will attack pest. A bit like predators they will kill pest , but instead of eatting them they will use pest as a host for their eggs. Ichnemon wasp are widely use and study as helper in crops
A parasitic wasp (Pachycrepoideus vindemmiae) laying eggs in a pupe of a cabbage pest (Delia radicum) :
There are many other example depending on the plants that farmers wants to polinat or the pest they want to fight. Those techniques are an interresting way to farm without pesticide.
