Experimental Validation of a Pest Management Model
Abstract
This paper describes 6 tests for validity which were conducted on a computer-based simulation model designed to describe the population dynamics of the velvetbean caterpillar (VBC), Anticarsia gemmatalis Hubner, in a soybean host crop. The tests were increasingly severe, ranging from the preliminary test, the Turing criterion for reasonableness, to a most stringent requirement that the model's output for the population dynamics of a different arthropod (the citrus rust mite, Phyllocoptruta Oleivora Ashm.) compares favorably with experimental measurements made in the field. The favorable results reported, each showing close agreement between the model's output and the observed measurements of the population dynamics, are believed to be strong substantiation for the model's validity. In addition, information regarding the VBC life cycle in Florida, random sampling methods for measuring insect population densities, and Geocoris as a predator for the VBC are discussed.Downloads
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