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The olive moth, Prays oleae (Bernard, 1788) (Lep., Praydidae), is one of the most common insect pests affecting the olives groves of the Mediterranean basin. Current farming practices are largely oriented to optimize the effectiveness of beneficial insects, among which the common green lacewings (Neur., Chrysopidae) stand out. Two different types of management models, organic and IPM, were compared in this study, which was conducted in olive groves in the regions of Andalucía (Spain) and Alentejo (Portugal). During 2020 and 2021, fruit samples were periodically collected, analyzing the population parameters (POP) and potential attack on the fruit (%PA), as well as the predatory impact (%PRED), which has allowed the estimation of the final attack (%FA), and derived fruit recovery rates (%REC). The results show that in organic olive groves of both countries, the infestation parameters (POP, %PA) were significantly higher than in IPM ones. However, predation rates were also higher in organic olive groves, which resulted in REC rates of between 75% and 80%, reducing FA rates to values of approximately 10% and 20% in Portugal and Spain, respectively. In contrast, in the IPM olive groves, significantly lower predation values were recorded, with lower REC rates than in the organic olive groves; the rates were very similar in both countries (ca. 54%), which led to a higher percentage of fruit loss (%FA) equivalent to 22% (Portugal) and to 34% (Spain). This paper discusses potential drivers influencing differences in the population values and percentages of infestation by P. oleae observed, as well as the differences in the final attack rates between olive groves of both countries, subject to the same type of agricultural management.

Abstract Pest control services provided by naturally occurring species (the so-called biocontrol services) are widely recognized to provide key incentives for biodiversity conservation. This is particularly relevant for vertebrate-mediated biocontrol services as many vertebrate species are of conservation concern, with most of their decline associated to landscape modification for agricultural purposes. Yet, we still lack rigorous approaches evaluating landscape-level correlates of biocontrol potential by vertebrates over broad spatial extents to better inform land-use and management decisions. We performed a spatially-explicit interaction-based assessment of potential biocontrol services in Portugal, using 1853 pairwise trophic interactions between 78 flying vertebrate species (birds and bats) and 53 insect pests associated to two widespread and economically valuable crops in the Euro-Mediterranean region, olive groves (Olea europaea subsp. europaea) and vineyards (Vitis vinifera subsp. vinifera). The study area was framed using 1004 square cells, each 10 × 10 km in size. Potential biocontrol services were determined at all those 10 × 10 km grid-cells in which each crop was present as the proportion of the realized out of all potential pairwise interactions between vertebrates and pests. Landscape correlates of biocontrol potential were also explored. Our work suggests that both birds and bats can effectively provide biocontrol services in olive groves and vineyards as they prey many insect pest species associated to both crops. Moreover, it demonstrates that these potential services are impacted by landscape-scale features and that this impact is consistent when evaluated over broad spatial extents. Thus, biocontrol potential by vertebrates significantly increases with increasing amount of natural area, while decreases with increasing area devoted to target crops, particularly olive groves. Overall, our study highlights the suitability of our interaction-based approach to perform spatially-explicit assessments of potential biocontrol services by vertebrates at local spatial scales and suggest its utility for integrating biodiversity and ecosystem services in conservation planning over broad spatial extents.

A noção de causalidade e de ordem permeia o entendimento das questões da vida, mesmo em uma visão dogmática. Partindo deste pressuposto, é plausível estudar o que dá sentido nas justificativas que embasam uma visão dogmática da ciência e que comumente tratamos de cientificismo. Com base em uma triangulação metodológica, desenvolveu-se um estudo de cunho qualitativo a fim de se mapearem, através das representações sociais, os elementos que fundamentam uma visão dogmática da ciência, considerando, como hipótese alternativa, uma visão otimista. Trabalhando com alunos do primeiro ano de um curso profissionalizante de Ensino Médio em saúde, observamos a presença de certos elementos do discurso cientificista ancorados, sobretudo, na ideia da ciência como único conhecimento. Assim, faz-se premente a historicização do saber-fazer cientifico, a fim de se contextualizar a ciência como produção humana.The order and causality notions pervade the understanding of life matters even in a dogmatic perspective. That being so, it is plausible to study the justifications that make dogmatic view of science meaningful, often treated as scientism. Based on a methodological triangulation, it has been carried out a qualitative study in order to map the elements that support such perspective by means of social representations, considering as alternative hypothesis an optimistic vision of science. Working with first grade mid-level students of a technical course in Health, we could observe the existence of certain elements of scientist discourse based on the conception of science knowledge as unique. Therefore, it is fundamental to understand the history of scientific activity so as to contextualize science as human production.