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Habitat Diversity at the Field and Landscape Level: Conservation Biological Control Research in California Viticulture

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Abstract

The intensification of viticulture in California has led to the creation of grape monocultures characterized by an absence of non-crop plant diversity in and around vineyards. The continued expansion of vineyards into California native plant communities has also led to an aggregate reduction of non-crop habitats at the landscape scale (Heaton and Merenlender 2000). Such increased concentration of plant host resources and the reduction of non-crop habitats supporting natural enemies have been shown to increase pest densities, with associated crop losses and reduce overall crop productivity (Root 1973; Russell 1989; Corbett and Rosenheim 1996a; Altieri and Nicholls 2004). To manage recurring pest problems, California grape growers rely principally on the use of synthetic pesticides, including organophosphate and carbamate insecticides, known to pose a range of environmental quality and human health risks (Bentley 2009; CDPR 2009; UC IPM 2010b; Eskenazi et al. 2010).

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Notes

  1. 1.

     Early research referred to all species of Anagrus wasps, a key egg parasitoid of Erythroneura leafhoppers, found in vineyard as ‘Anagrus epos Girault.’ Recent taxonomic revisions of Anagrus epos by Triapitsyn (1998) have revealed a complex of species, including the two most common grape leafhopper parasitoids in California: A. erythroneurae and A. daanei. As such, Anagrus spp. will hereafter be referred to as simply ‘Anagrus.’

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Miles, A., Wilson, H., Altieri, M., Nicholls, C. (2012). Habitat Diversity at the Field and Landscape Level: Conservation Biological Control Research in California Viticulture. In: Bostanian, N., Vincent, C., Isaacs, R. (eds) Arthropod Management in Vineyards:. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-4032-7_8

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