A BIG DATA APPROACH TO CHARACTERIZING IMPACTS OF WARMING CLIMATE ON BIOLOGICAL CONTROL SYSTEMS

The major goals of this project are two-fold: 1) to develop an improved fundamental understanding of how and why warming climates will shape future pest and natural enemy ecology in agriculture; and 2) to identify a set of pests whose damage potential we expect to intensify in coming years. Sharing this knowledge with farmers and researchers will help to direct research and pest management efforts in areas where it will be most needed. The specific objectives we will undertake to accomplish these goals include: 1) to characterize the effects of warming climate on populations of seven beneficial insect species and seven of their target pests for three major crops across Californiaand Spain; 2) to compare how one key natural enemy, Chrysoperla carnea, responds to warmingclimate across five cropping systems; and 3) to determine the role of thermal ecology in insect population responses to warming climate for a set of 25 natural enemy and pest species.