Pre-emptive and proactive biological control for invasive alien plants
Pre-emptive biological control has been considered for plant pests (see for example EPPO RS 2024/251 and RS 2025/021) where potential biological control agents can be identified in advance of the pest arriving. This method may also be suitable for invasive alien plants where, through horizon scanning, invasive plants can be identified and prioritised based on their potential for negative impacts. Surveys in the targets area of origin can identify biological control agents before the invasive plant has an extensive range expansion in its introduced range and initial host range testing of potential biological control agents can provide an indication of their potential host range. Proactive biological control scenarios, in comparison, include situations where the invasive plant species is already present in the area of concern but is not having a significant impact. Potentially, the invasive plant may be in a lag-phase in the area under consideration but has demonstrated negative impacts in other regions with similar ecological characteristics. Applying biological control at this stage may be beneficial to mitigate future damage. Developing and implementing biological control research at an early stage, before significant impacts occur, can act to preserve ecosystem services and biological diversity.
Sources
Smith MC, Canavan K, Minteer CR, Lieurance D (2025) Preemptive and proactive application of biological control for weeds: An argument for swifter action to aid conservation efforts. Biological Control 202, 105725 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocontrol.2025.105725