The first large scale biological pest control used in the USA was in 1886 against the cottony-cushion scale a tiny insect threatening California’s citrus crop. The Rodolia cardinalis, also called the vedalia beetle, was imported from Australia to destroy the predatory ladybird beetle. The pest control method was quite successful within two years that the technique was adopted worldwide.

Date:
      1886
Location:
      California, USA; Australia

Additional Information:

• Biological pest control – Wikipedia
  The first international shipment of an insect as biological control agent was made by Charles V. … In 1888–1889 the vedalia beetle, Rodolia cardinalis, a lady beetle, was introduced from Australia to California to control the cottony cushion scale, Icerya purchasi.
• Pest control – Wikipedia
  Pest control is the regulation or management of a species defined as a pest, a member of the … Chemical pesticides were first used around 2500 BC, when the Sumerians used sulphur compounds as insecticides. … Biological pest control is a method of controlling pests such as insects and mites by using other organisms.
• Biological pest control – New World Encyclopedia
  Nov 19, 2019 – Biological control, biocontrol, or biological pest control is a method … Predators, such as lady beetles and lacewings, are mainly … These naturally occurring biological controls are often susceptible to the same pesticides used to target their hosts … The first step in the process is to determine the origin of the …
• Biological Control
  Jump to Insect Parasitoidism – Biological Control Efforts in the Early 19th Century … reported that he used the predaceous carabid beetle, Calasoma …
• What is Biological Control?
  There are many examples of successful classical biological control programs. One of the earliest successes was with the cottony cushion scale, a pest that was devastating the California citrus industry in the late 1800s. A predatory insect, the vedalia beetle, and a parasitoid fly were introduced from Australia.