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Temperature control Agricultural pests in Barcelona
What are agricultural pests and what effects do they produce?
We understand agricultural pests as those in which all animals, plants or microorganisms, at that moment, have a negative effect on agricultural production.
If there is a concentrated and reliable source of food, plants can thrive. The measures normally used to increase crop productivity, in turn, create a favorable environment for pests.
In terms of plant protection, the concept of agricultural pest has evolved alongside the development of science and technology applied to agriculture.
Therefore, biotic entities that could be grouped into higher animals ( insects, mites, nematodes, birds and rodents ), microorganisms ( viroids, viruses, mycoplasmas, bacteria and fungi ) and higher plants ( weeds ), continue to be included in the concept of pest , and can be grouped into higher animals, diseases and weeds.
However, other biotic entities that were once considered pests, such as many species associated in one way or another with the host, are no longer considered pests. This includes numerous endemic species, which were rarely abundant and had insufficient densities to truly be considered pests. Therefore, their economic importance (damage resulting in losses) was not taken into account; something that is now essential for deciding and defining the category of an organism regularly or permanently associated with a crop as a pest.
Agricultural pests: another concept
Another concept of pest leaves aside the economic conception and focuses on the interests of people (health, cultivated plants, domestic animals, materials or natural means) ; that is, whether the potentially harmful species exists.
This allows us to separate the concept of a pest from the animal species that causes the damage, thus avoiding the establishment of classifications of 'good' and 'bad' species , and facilitating the explanation of why a species is beneficial in one place and harmful in another.
The international community accepts the following definition for pest:
“Any species, race or biotype of plant or animal or pathogenic agent harmful to plants or plant products” [FAO 2018].
- "Any species, race or biotype of plants or animals or pathogens harmful to plants or plant products" [FAO 2018]
- Economic importance (damage translated into loss) is something that is now essential to decide and define the category as an organism's pest
- Another pest concept focuses on people's interests: health, cultivated plants, domestic animals, materials, or natural environments.
Agricultural pests: Classification
We can then classify agricultural pests in different ways:
Biological
- Weeds (plants)
- Pathogens (diseases caused by viruses, bacteria and / or fungi)
- Arthropods (insects, arachnids, mites, etc.)
- Vertebrates (mammals, birds, reptiles, etc.)
By the type of damage they cause
- Direct plague: When the species damages the organs of the plant that the man is going to harvest.
- Indirect pest: When the species damages plant organs that are not the parts that man harvests
Phytosanitary importance
- Quarantine plague: Pest of potential economic importance to the endangered area when the pest does not yet exist or, if it exists, is not widespread and is under official control.
- Non-quarantine pest: Pest that is not considered a quarantine pest for a given area.
- Regulated pest: Quarantine pest or regulated non-quarantine pest.
- Regulated non-quarantine pest: Non-quarantine pest whose presence in the plants for planting influences the proposed use for these plants with economically unacceptable repercussions and, therefore, is regulated in the territory of the importing contracting party.
- Forest pest: Plague of forest products.
- Exotic plague: The one that does not exist in a certain area.
- Plague A1: Exotic quarantine pest to a given area.
- Plague A2: Quarantine pest that is present in an area, but with limited distribution and kept under official control.
Pest control
Insecticides , which vary according to their method of action.
- Contact: system of obstructing the tracheal stigmas of the insect.
- Ingestion: Produces poisoning in the digestive system.
- Systematic: Consists of the plant absorbing the insecticide, causing it to die when the animal feeds on it.
- Inhalation or suffocating: Choking the insect.
- Attraction and repulsion: It works by attracting the insect to try the plant, once the insect is in the same cause that the insect feels disgust and walks away.
Currently, just as FitoStinger prioritizes this aspect, the aim is to use organic insecticides to minimize (or eliminate) their negative impact on the environment. Biological control measures are also implemented whenever possible.
Biological control is a method of controlling pests, diseases and weeds that consists of using living organisms in order to control the populations of another organism.
- The concept of plague must be separated from the animal species that causes the damage, and thus we avoid establishing classifications of 'good' and 'bad' species
- Some species will be beneficial in one place and harmful in another.
- We will be able to classify pests in a biological way, by the type of damage caused, by their phytosanitary importance or by the control system used
- FitoStinger prioritizes the use of ecological insecticides
- Biological control actions will be prioritized when possible
- Biological control uses living organisms to control populations of another organism
- The spread of pests has increased dramatically due to climate change, globalization and trade
- Today pests can easily spread between countries and quickly reach epidemic grade
- Rapid spread can jeopardize farmers' livelihoods and food security for millions of people
- The spread of pests is carried out mainly through migratory processes, by environmental factors and by means of vectors
- FitoStinger has environmental protection as its premise
A drone for every need
We invite you to see our UAS
Agricultural pests: Propagation
The spread of transboundary plant pests and diseases has increased dramatically in recent years, thanks to globalization, trade, and climate change.
Thus, pests can easily spread to several countries and reach epidemic proportions . This can jeopardize the livelihoods of vulnerable farmers and the food and nutritional security of millions of people.
Agricultural pests and diseases are spread primarily in three ways :
- Trade and movement migratory
- The environmental factors: wind
- And by insects or other pathogens transmitted by vectors
- Our treatments are based on localized and drift-free applications
- We feed on the latest technology systems, based on artificial vision, georeferencing and analysis of the environment
- Our FitoAgro drone is trained to treat large areas
- The relationship between the person in charge of the cultivation and our technicians will be essential in the treatments
- We carry out medium and long-term strategy planning to increase productivity, being able to base studies in precision agriculture
- Our adaptability allows us to offer customized solutions to very specific requirements. Never hesitate to ask us about your idea.
Agricultural pests: How do we carry out the treatments?
FitoStinger prioritizes environmental protection in all its treatments. Therefore, since its inception, it has maintained the same localized application method using our patented injector arm . However , we also offer other equipment that allows us to maintain this localized application while covering larger areas and applying greater quantities of the necessary product.
Therefore, the drone precisely approaches each target and performs treatments in a way that eliminates drift , preserving the environment and focusing directly on the problem.
Our drones are evolving day by day, increasing their artificial vision capabilities and terrain analysis to adapt to the terrain and improve flights and proximity to the ground.
Agricultural pests: personalized FitoStinger treatments
From here on, a wide range of options and customization opens up for each of our clients. Being able to choose very specific solutions to each problem and having the ability to adapt our aircraft to each situation, thus offering the most appropriate treatment for the pest that affects the crop.
Throughout this page we have seen some examples of pests that we can treat with our drones, and especially with our FitoAgro drone.
On the other hand, we will always strive to establish a relationship of maximum trust with the person responsible for the crop or the engineer managing it , joining forces with our team and creating precise work plans . No one knows their own land and crops better than the person in charge, making this collaboration and communication essential.
In addition to all this, assessments and planning of medium and long-term strategies can be added , to generate statistical data that will allow for improved productivity in the area and combine it, if necessary, with analyses framed within precision agriculture.
