Willem Takken's research
After the Second World War much entomological research was undertaken from the concept that most pest problems caused by insects could be solved by application of insecticides.
Research
Chemical control was considered cheap, effective and safe. It is now realized that this approach was non-sustainable. Already in the early days of chemical control the Laboratory of Entomology choose a different approach for its research, with emphasis on alternative methods of control. Initially the research focused on insect physiology i.e. hormonal regulation of insect development and resulted in the discovery of insect growth regulators as modern and selective control agents. Subsequently much work was done (and continues to be done) on the physiology of insect/plant interactions and the ecology of parasite/host and predator/prey interactions. In the last decade research on arthropod vectors of human and animal diseases complemented the research at the Laboratory.
The Laboratory of Entomology conducts fundamental and applied research. Fundamental scientific research concerns 5 topics:
- Host plant selection by herbivorous insects and mites;
- Chemical communication between plants and carnivorous insects and mites;
- Foraging behaviour of predators and parasitoids;
- Population dynamics of parasitoids
- Evolutionary ecology of asexual reproduction in insects.
Applied research is narrowly associated with the fundamental research, and includes the following topics:
- Development of biological and integrated pest management in greenhouses, orchards and field crops;
- Mechanisms of host-plant resistance;
- Biological and integrated control of pests and vectors in the tropics
Publications
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Flight behaviour of Anopheles gambiae Giles (Diptera: Culicidae) in response to host stimuli: a windtunnel study.
Proceedings of the Section Experimental and Applied Entomology of the Netherlands Entomological Society (1990), Volume: 1 - ISSN 1388-8390 - p. 121-128. -
Age effects on the insemination rate of Anopheles gambiae s.l. (Diptera: Culicidae) in the laboratory.
Proceedings of the Section Experimental and Applied Entomology of the Netherlands Entomological Society (1990), Volume: 1 - ISSN 1388-8390 - p. 99-99. -
Environmental measures for malaria control in Indonesia. A historical review on species sanitation.
Wageningen: Wageningen Agricultural University (Wageningen Agricultural University Papers 90-7) - ISBN: 9789067541862 -
A new windtunnel for studies on host-seeking behaviour of mosquitoes.
Proceedings of the Section Experimental and Applied Entomology of the Netherlands Entomological Society (1991), Volume: 2 - ISSN 1388-8390 - p. 171-171. -
The role of olfaction in host-seeking of mosquitoes: a review.
Insect Science and its Application (1991), Volume: 12 - ISSN 0191-9040 - p. 287-295. -
Effect of rearing temperature and larval density on larval survival, age at pupation and adult size of Anopheles gambiae.
Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata (1992), Volume: 63 - ISSN 0013-8703 - p. 265-271. -
The level of anti-sporozoite antibodies in a highly endemic malaria area and its relationship with exposure to mosquitoes.
Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (1992), Volume: 86 - ISSN 0035-9203 - p. 499-504. -
The influence of CO2 and human steroids on the flight behaviour of An. gambiae s.s and An. stephensi
In: Abstract book of the Proceedings 6th symposium on Arbovirus Research in Australia, Brisbane, Australia, 7 - 11 December, 1993 - p. 40-40. -
A survey of the distribution of Glossina pallidipes Austen around the Lambwe valley, South Nyanza district, Kenya.
Insect Science and its Application (1993), Volume: 14 - ISSN 0191-9040 - p. 225-228. -
Absence of seasonal variation in malaria parasitaemia in an area of intense seasonal transmission.
Acta Tropica (1993), Volume: 54 - ISSN 0001-706X - p. 55-72.