This area is for identification of pest and beneficial insects and invertebrates.
Which insect is it anyway?
When assessing for insect pest species it is important to know what you are looking for and how to identify it correctly. Insects are a wide and diverse class of animals and being able to accurately identify them is key in understanding any risk to a crop.
This page will provide resources and links to aid in identification of key pests and of their natural enemies.
Content below is from across the PEP community and is not necessarily endorsed by Stewards or by PEP
Crop protection refers to practices and measures employed in agriculture to safeguard crops from both biotic (pests, diseases and weeds) and abiotic (environmental factors) stresses. They key goal of crop production is to maintain crop productivity, health and quality whilst minimising yield losses.
Sitobion avenae and Rhopalosiphum padi, otherwise known as the grain aphid and bird cherry-oat aphid, are the two main species of cereal aphids.
The pea and bean weevil adults cause characteristic leaf notching around the leaf margins. The larvae can cause significant damage to the nitrogen-fixing root nodules.
The Diamondback moths (Plutella xylostella) are migrant moths with caterpillars that can defoliate brassicas. Adult moths are about 6 mm long. They are brownish and have three light brown to white triangular marks on the trailing edge of each forewing. When the adults are at rest, the triangular marks on the forewings meet to form diamond shapes.
Invertebrate pests cause problems in agriculture when the level of injury they cause reaches a point where the crop yield is significantly reduced.
The bruchid beetle (also known as bean seed beetle or broad bean weevil) damages the seeds of field bean and its larvae can lead to crop rejection in broad beans.
Pea and bean weevil (also called pea leaf weevil) is a particular risk to spring-sown peas and beans.
The encyclopaedia provides at-a-glance information on the pests and natural enemies associated with cropping systems.
Natural enemies, such as parasitoid species, are an important element in managing crop pests.
Rothamsted's Insect Survey is host to a nationwide network of light-traps and suction-traps that
