The new side effects manual is the most comprehensive and accurate overview of the direct side effects of crop protection products on bumblebees and natural enemies used by the horticultural industry. Results were verified in trials under field conditions.

Cooperation with several domestic and foreign research institutes, universities and the phyto-pharmaceutical industry as well as sources such as the 'Joint Testing Programs' of the IOBC workgroup 'Side Effects of Pesticides on Beneficial Organisms' was essential for the completion of this manual.

The information presented is mainly based on species and strains of beneficial organisms as they are delivered by BIOBEST N.V. and its distributors all over the world. Natural enemies from other origins, even if they are the same species, may react differently to active in-gredients mentioned in the manual.

There have been some important modifications from previous lists:

1. Some irrelevant data have been removed such as the side effects of crop protection products on eggs of predatory mites. Firstly, the duration of this stage is so short and even harmless products to the egg stage can be lethal to the young larvae. Therefore, data pertaining to the larvae is more useful. Secondly, beneficial organisms are rarely if ever sold or applied in practice while in the egg stage. Thirdly, the egg stage is rarely the significant proportion of a population in a field situation at any given time.
    
2. Some natural enemies have disappeared from the list, such as Typhlodromus pyri. Other natural enemies such as Orius spp. have been combined into one group because of similarities among the species.
    
3. Natural enemies that are similar to each other but react differently to active ingredients are kept separate on the list. For example, Anthocoris nemoralis, now included in this manual, is an important predatory bug that is closely related to Orius, though it reacts differently to various products and is therefore mentioned separately on the list.
    
4. Residual effects are no longer mentioned for products that are non-toxic to biological agents.
    
5. Trade names are no longer mentioned. Firstly, trade names of some products are limited to usage in a few countries. Secondly, some products have more than 10 trade names. To keep the manual as succinct as possible, only names of active ingredients are listed.
    
6. A few old, less used compounds were also removed from the list.
    
7. The permutations and combinations of active ingredients available on the market is so voluminous that they are not included on the list. An exception is the mixture of cyprodinil with fludioxonil which is commonly used in strawberry production even though both active ingredients are rarely used separately.
    
8. Side effects not found in this manual may be available on the website www.biobest.be, along with more detailed additional information.
   
    

This manual is to be used as a guideline for the complete use of beneficial organisms such as bumblebees, predators, parasitoids, nematodes and fungi in combination with crop protection products. Information interpretation can be difficult:

1. Products can be toxic for some beneficial organisms, yet still be useful in integrated crop protection. For example, dichloorvos, mevinphos and abamectine are toxic to natural enemies but these products can be indispensable to clean a crop or greenhouse before natural enemies are introduced. "Hot spots" can be treated without having a significant impact on populations of natural enemies. In most circumstances a lower dosage of product can decrease the negative impact on the population of beneficial insects.
    
2. Only direct toxicity of products on natural enemies is described. Sublethal effects such as reduced fertility, altered searching behaviour, decreased parasitization capacity or lifespan are not included on the list. Toxic effects on bumblebees can cause de-viant behaviour that results in inadequate pollination of flowers.
    
3. This list is based on results obtained under Western European horticultural and climatic conditions. Consequently, the results may not be comparable in the southern countries. For many natural enemies the toxicity decreases in warmer climates. The lifespan of products declines as compounds degrade faster under the influence of sunlight and heat. Therefore there are differences in toxicity observed between summer and winter trials.
    

1. For the beneficial organisms, the residual period or persistance is described in days (d), weeks (w), or hours (h) for bumblebees. A hyphen (-) signifies that the information is not available. "More than" (>) signifies that the indicated residual period is a strict minimum. That is why BIOBEST N.V. advises to wait longer before the introduction of natural enemies.
    
2. Bumblebee hives must be closed and removed from the greenhouse during the application and the persistance of a product from class B . The nests can be removed for a maximum period of 72 hours before flower pollination is affected.
    
3. For Paecilomyces fumosoroseus (PreFeRal) the persistance indicates the required waiting period before PreFeRal can be used effectively following pesticide treatment.
    
4. The period of product persistance in plastic greenhouses can be longer due to the ability of plastic to absorb a product and gradually release the compound afterwards.
    

The most reliable information available has been used to compile this manual. However, under no circumstances can BIOBEST N.V. be held responsible for the use and/or the application of the information con-tained in this side effect manual or for any possible losses or damages incurred as a consequence of the use of products or information men-tioned in this side effect manual. It is very important to follow the guidelines, which are mentioned on the product labels, before using any products for crop protection.

Remark: registered crop protection products differ between countries. Always follow the legal regulations.