This 154-page full-colour illustrated field guide is designed to improve decision making in managing over 90 insect pests of economic importance in field and forage crops in Western Canada. Along with diagnostic information for pest species, the guide also helps to identify over 30 natural enemies that prey on or parasitize these pests.
The book describes several features of pests and their natural enemy species, such as hosts, identification characteristics, life cycle, damage or benefits, monitoring and scouting techniques, economic thresholds, control or conservation options, as well as tips on how these can be combined with other management approaches.
The development of this field guide was identified as a priority within the “Reduced-Risk Strategy for Foliar Insect Pests of Field Crops” and was funded by the Pest Management Centre’s Pesticide Risk Reduction team. Authored by Hugh Philip, the guide is the result of an extensive collaboration among many field-experienced research entomologists, pest management specialists, extension experts and university professors across the Prairie Provinces.
The guide is intended for use by growers, scouts, extension specialists, educators, and other agriculture service providers as a tool to support Integrated Pest Management (IPM).
Field crop and forage pests and their natural enemies in Western Canada is available through the Government of Canada Publications website.