BACKGROUNDAn innovative version of the sterile insect technique (SIT) for pest control, called boosted SIT, relies on the use of sterile males coated with a biocide to control a target wild pest population of the same species. The objective of the present study was to assess the relevance of such technology to control the fruit fly Bactrocera dorsalis and fruit losses in mango orchards using. An agent‐based simulation model named BOOSTIT was used to explore the reduction of fruit losses thank to sterile male fruit flies control and economic benefits according to different strategies of sterile male release. The simulation considered a landscape of 30.25 ha made up of four mango orchards.RESULTSThe SIT and the boosted SIT reduced fruit losses when releases were made before the mango fruiting period. According to model simulations, releases should be performed at least seven times at 2‐week intervals and with a sterile/wild male ratio of at least 10:1. Considering the benefit/cost ratio (BCR), few releases should be done with a late start date. The BCR showed economic gains from the two control methods, the number of saved fruits and BCR being higher for SIT.CONCLUSIONOur simulations showed that SIT would have better results than the boosted SIT to contribute to an effective control of Bactrocera dorsalis at the scale of a small landscape. We highlight the need for laboratory studies of other types of pathogen to find a suitable one with higher incubation time and lower cost. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry.

中文翻译：

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探索增强昆虫不育技术控制芒果园果蝇的潜力


背景用于害虫控制的昆虫不育技术（SIT）的创新版本称为增强型SIT，它依赖于使用涂有杀生物剂的不育雄性来控制同一物种的目标野生害虫种群。本研究的目的是评估此类技术在控制果蝇橘小实蝇和芒果园果实损失方面的相关性。采用名为 BOOSTIT 的基于代理的模拟模型来探索不育雄性果蝇控制所带来的果实损失的减少以及根据不育雄性释放策略的经济效益。该模拟考虑了由四个芒果园组成的 30.25 公顷景观。结果 当在芒果结果期之前释放时，昆虫不育技术和增强昆虫不育技术减少了果实损失。根据模型模拟，每两周至少放生七次，不育/野生雄性比例至少为 10:1。考虑到效益/成本比（BCR），很少有发布应该推迟开始日期。 BCR 显示了两种控制方法的经济收益，即昆虫不育技术的保存果实数量和 BCR 更高。结论我们的模拟表明，昆虫不育技术比增强型昆虫技术具有更好的效果，有助于在规模上有效控制橘小实蝇。小景观。我们强调需要对其他类型的病原体进行实验室研究，以找到一种具有更长潜伏时间和更低成本的合适病原体。 © 2024 化学工业协会。