Why pest management needs behavioral ecology and vice versa

Behavior manipulation is becoming an accepted tactic in pest management, however, there are many ways in which the approach can be improved. In this review, I explain how and why insect behavioral response to various stimuli can vary dramatically under different conditions and that it is this variable response that must be understood before behavior manipulation becomes widely accepted in pest management programs. I propose that entomologists use concepts from behavioral ecology to manipulate pest behavior in a predictable manner. The key is to study behaviors that maximize fitness in natural environments and then exploit these behaviors in agriculture. I provide examples from a range of behavior manipulation tactics, including use of attracticides, kairomone‐mediated biological control, use of marking pheromones, and push‐pull manipulation.