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Root maggots are pests of
canola and are gradually increasing in severity in the prairies. In years
of severe infestation it is estimated that root maggot damage costs prairie
canola growers $100 million. We have been working towards introducing
specialized European natural enemies to exert biological control on this
pest of European origin. Successful biological control would provide
sustained maggot control without cost to producers. So far, we have
identified a parasitic beetle that kills European root maggots and shows
promise as a biological control agent for introduction. We are currently
working to assess how much additional maggot mortality is likely to occur if
the beetle is introduced into Canada.
In this project we are
working to get two additional pieces of information about the beetle.
Firstly, we are studying the factors determining the time of growing season
when the beetle attacks root maggots. We will use the information to
identify populations of European beetles that have times of attack that are
synchronized with the time of vulnerability of root maggots in canola in the
prairies. Poor synchronization of attack would be detrimental to control
effectiveness. The second part of the study is to characterize the range of
insects that the beetle will attack. It is essential to do this so that we
can be assured that introductions would not jeopardize wanted or beneficial
species. Successful completion of the project, and a finding that expected
additional mortality of maggots is great, would pave the way for operational
introductions of the parasitic beetle.
Funding partners include the
Canola Agronomic Research Program, Canola Council of Canada, CABI
Bioscience, and the University of Manitoba (Graduate Fellowship).
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