Department of Agriculture and Food WA entomologist, Dr John Botha, has some good news from a trial plot near Cunderdin where various cereal, canola and lupin plots have emerged.
Pitfall traps have revealed that lucerne fleas have also emerged for the feast, but lying in wait for them are large numbers of predatory snout mites, which emerged before them and have been feeding on them ever since, according to Dr Botha.
High numbers of lucerne fleas were found in the trial plot last autumn, damaging them before being sprayed with, for instance, chlorpyrifos.
Despite the spraying last year, the snout mite survived in big enough numbers to control the lucerne fleas without further spraying required.
Dr Botha says it's a typical case of how effective Integrated Pest Management (IPM) can reduce pests while minimising insecticide use.
The Cunderdin crop is part of a WANTFA trial funded by the Grains Research and Development Corporation, which also has an interest in researching IPM.
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