- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
"Crop protection in cotton against arthropod pests has historically been mono-tactical and dominated by the use of broad-spectrum insecticides," Naranjo says. "It has also been known for a long time that cotton harbors a rich community of natural enemies, particularly generalist arthropod predators, which have the capacity to suppress numerous pests. Here, I will focus on advances in the Arizona cotton system, which has enabled biological control to become a critical tactic in IPM and driven insecticide use to historical lows."
"A key element has been the deployment of integrated control, an innovative concept introduced over 50 years ago by a group of UC entomologists that calls for the interplay of chemical and biological control for pest management. I will provide an overview of a large research effort involving classical and conservation biological control, selective insecticides, transgenic cotton, and decision aids that have transformed cotton IPM and provided a rare example of true integrated control."
Naranjo, as the director of the Arid-Land Agricultural Research Center, oversees a broad research program focused on crop production and protection of arid-land crops. He is internationally recognized for his research in insect sampling and decision aids, integrated pest management (IPM), conservation biological control, insect population ecology, and environmental risk assessment of transgenic crops. He is president of the Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of America.
He received his doctorate in entomology in 1987 from Cornell University, his master's degree in entomology in 1983 from the University of Florida, and a bachelor's degree in 1978 in zoology from Colorado State University. He has authored more than 200 scientific papers, books, and book chapters, technical reports and extension bulletins, and has presented more than 100 invited papers and seminars at professional conferences, symposia, and academic institutions.
Naranjo served as co-editor-in-chief of the international journal, Crop Protection, from 1995-2006 and currently serves as subject editor for Environmental Entomology, covering the topic area of transgenic plants and insects.
Naranjo holds an adjunct appointment in the University of Arizona's Department of Entomology. He has recevied numerous awards and honors, including the UDSA-ARS Early Career Scientist of the Year; the C. W. Woodworth Award from the Pacific Branch of the Entomological Society of America (ESA); and the ESA Recognition Award in Entomology. In addition, his team won the Entomological Foundation IPM Team Award.