Biodiversity and Biological Control in Agroecosystems

Agroecosystem biodiversity forms the backbone of sustainable crop production by supporting complex networks of predators, parasitoids and other natural enemies that regulate pest populations. A diverse array of species across multiple trophic levels not only enhances the stability and resilience of agricultural landscapes but also reduces reliance on synthetic pesticides, mitigating environmental and human-health risks. Biological control harnesses these ecological interactions to suppress herbivore outbreaks, drawing on habitat management, species introductions and landscape diversification to deliver targeted, cost-effective pest regulation. Current research emphasises the importance of functional traits, community composition and non-consumptive interactions in optimising service delivery, while recognising that global change, habitat fragmentation and intensive monocultures pose significant challenges to maintaining these ecosystem functions at scale.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have demonstrated that the combination of natural enemies can influence the efficacy of biological control programmes. Greenhouse experiments have shown that mixed releases of predatory ladybirds and whitefly-specific parasitoid wasps yield variable outcomes in predation, parasitism and adult emergence, underlining the need to tailor enemy assemblages to specific pest management goals. Investigations into predator-induced phenotypic plasticity have revealed within- and trans-generational defence responses in planthoppers triggered by risk cues, offering novel avenues to manipulate pest dispersal and survival. Foundational work on aphid reproductive adaptation under starvation stress has illustrated how migratory morphs modulate embryo development to support colony establishment, informing strategies to disrupt pest population growth by targeting nutritional stressors.

Biodiversity and Biological Control in Agroecosystems publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in biodiversity and biological control in agroecosystems across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Biodiversity: Variation in life at genetic, species and ecosystem levels within a particular habitat, region or the entire planet.

Agroecosystem: An agricultural environment considered as an ecological system, incorporating interactions among crops, pests, natural enemies, soil and climate.

Biological control: Use of living organisms such as predators, parasitoids, pathogens or competitors to suppress pest populations below damaging levels.

Functional diversity: Range and value of species’ traits within a community that influence ecosystem processes such as pest suppression.

Non-consumptive effects (enemy-risk effects): Indirect impacts of predators on prey through behavioural, physiological or morphological changes induced by the threat of predation rather than direct consumption.

Polyculture: Farming practice of growing multiple crop species in the same space to enhance resource utilisation and ecological resilience.

Phenotypic plasticity: Ability of an organism to alter its morphology, physiology or behaviour in response to environmental cues.

References

1. Functional diversity positively affects prey suppression by invertebrate predators: a meta‐analysis. Ecology (2018).
2. Plant Defenses and Predation Risk Differentially Shape Patterns of Consumption, Growth, and Digestive Efficiency in a Guild of Leaf-Chewing Insects. PLOS ONE (2014).
3. Natural enemy composition rather than richness determines pest suppression. BioControl (2018).
4. What works in conservation? Using expert assessment of summarised evidence to identify practices that enhance natural pest control in agriculture. Biodiversity and Conservation (2016).
5. Mixed release of two parasitoids and a polyphagous ladybird as a potential strategy to control the tobacco whitefly Bemisia tabaci. Scientific Reports (2016).
6. Predator cue-induced plasticity of morphology and behavior in planthoppers facilitate the survival from predation. Scientific Reports (2021).
7. Reproductive adaptation in alate adult morphs of the English grain aphid Sitobion avenae under starvation stress. Scientific Reports (2019).