Evaluation of Insect Control Programs Using Time-Series Data

This research was intended to determine the usefulness of insect control programs in the form of time-series data in analyzing the insect density and abundance changes in subsequent time intervals. The experiment was held in various locations that differed in terms of the environment (agricultural, urban, and semi-natural) and the environmental features of each of the locations were documented. The experiment focused on the most widespread and the most significant insect species, such as flies, mosquitoes, aphids, and locusts. Different control programs were used such as chemical control, biological control, and integrated pest management (IPM) and insect data was collected systematically through light and sticky traps and periodic manual sampling. The outcome showed the substantial decline of insect population after the use of control programs with a percentage change between 41.7% - 60% being the relative change of the insects based on the species and the period of follow-up, where flies recorded the highest percent change. The statistical results (t-test and ANOVA) demonstrated the existence of the significance between the pre- and post-control periods. Correlation applied to the different environmental variables and the abundance of insects were found to be affected by the humidity factor the most in terms of its positive effect on the increase in the insect populations, high temperatures and wind speed affected the factor negatively thus showing the significance of combining the environmental factors in the development of control programs. These results indicate that integrated pest management programs are effective in decreasing the level of insects and maintaining performance in both short-term and medium-term, and additional performance increases can be reached by using accurate environmental monitoring and the right time of intervention.