Briefly describe the role of biological control of pests and diseases.

Explanation

a. The Ladybird (a familiar beetle with red and black markings) and Dragonflies are useful to get rid of aphids and mosquitoes respectively.
b. Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) used to control butterfuly caterpillars. Dried spores are mixed with water and sprayed onto vulnerable plants such as brassicas and fruit trees, where these are eaten by the insect larvae. In the gut of the larvae, the toxin is released and the larvae get killed.
c.Trichoderma a free living fungus used to control several plant pathogens.
d. Baculoviruses are pathogen that attack insects and other arthropods. The majority of Baculoviruses used as biological control agents are in the genus Nucleopolyhedrovirus.
e. These viruses are excellent candidates for species-specific, narrow spectrum insecticidal application. They have no negative impacts on plants, mammals, birds, fish, etc. This is very use full in integrated pest management programme (IPM).