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Insects

Technically, an insect pest of crops is any species that feeds on crops and thus competes with producers for crop yield or quality. However, the mere presence of a crop-feeding insect is not enough to establish a species as a pest that requires expenditures for its management. The status of any given pest (major or minor) depends largely on how often and in what numbers it occurs, as well as the economics of managing the pest. Factors that contribute to choices about insect management include the market value of the crop, the cost of controlling the pest relative to its potential for causing crop loss, the susceptibility of the crop to the pest, and the environment, all of which are variable. Consequently, effectively managing insect pests of field crops requires considerable knowledge about the pests and the factors that affect their populations.

Copied from Chapter 13 of the Illinois Agronomy Handbook
Kevin Steffey and Mike Gray, Authors

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