Classical Biological Control of Invasive Sap-Sucking Insect Pests in Pinus Plantations: An African Perspective. In: B.P. Hurly, S.A. Lawson and B. Slippers (eds). Biological Control of Insect Pests in Plantation Forests

Forest plantations were first established in Africa between 1900 and 1945 with the arrival of European settlers. Pinus is amongst the most widely planted tree genera in the region, representing 20.5% of the plantation area. The planting of exotic pine tree species in the continent was followed by the introduction of non-native sap-sucking insect pests, with catastrophic effect on the plantations, particularly from the mid-1970s to late-1990s. Examples of introduced insect pests include black pine aphid (Cinara cronartii), pine woolly aphid (Pineus boerneri), and pine needle aphid (Eulachnus rileyi) that are widespread throughout pine growing regions in Eastern and Southern Africa. Invasive insect pests are often not considered as serious pests in their native regions, but some are important pests on their host trees in invaded areas. Classical biological control (CBC) is often considered the most effective means of controlling invasive sap-sucking insect pests of pines. Here we provide a review of the most serious sap-sucking insect pests of Pinus plantations and their respective CBC programmes, with a particular focus on Africa.

Mutitu, E.K. and Odhiambo, K.O. (2025). Classical Biological Control of Invasive Sap-Sucking Insect Pests in Pinus Plantations: An African Perspective. In: B.P. Hurly, S.A. Lawson and B. Slippers (eds). Biological Control of Insect Pests in Plantation Forests. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-76495-0