Refuges of Genetic Variation: Controlling Crop Pest Evolution (1 of 2)

Insects persistently nibble away at crops in the fields and at the narrow profit margin they offer. What’s a farmer to do? Spray, of course. Or, plant crops that have been genetically engineered to produce their own pesticides.

But evolutionary theory tells us that these solutions will not work indefinitely. Pest insects have short generation times and large population sizes—which means that they evolve quickly. If pesticides are widely applied, or if fields are widely planted with pesticide-producing plants, insects resistant to the pesticide will evolve. Some degree of resistance has been documented for every major class of insecticide used in agriculture.¹

Pesticide application on leaf lettuce

Potato Beetle