Molecular markers to study population structure and dynamics in beneficial insects (predators and parasitoids)

For beneficial insects - predators and parasitoids - to be used effectively within pest control scenarios, it is often necessary to have fundamental as well as more applied information about them, including data on population dynamics, host switching and breeding systems. In recent years, such information has been gained by the use of molecular DNA markers. In this article, we briefly discuss the range of molecular markers available and their potential uses, concentrating on how particular markers have been employed to unravel different patterns of behaviour. Whilst alternative methods of tracking insects have proved highly informative when applied over small geographical scales (e.g., fluorescent dyes and radar transponders as attached to bees, etc), these approaches tend to be confined to studies of movement rather than other potentially important behaviours.