Online decision support systems, remote sensing and artificial intelligence applications for wheat pest management

Infestation with herbivorous insects and other invertebrates (“pests”) can be extremely damaging to wheat production, potentially resulting in up to 80% yield loss. Reducing the damage caused by these pests is a central component of crop protection practices. Decision Support Systems (DSS) are interactive systems (usually software based) that help users identify and solve problems and make decisions as part of an IPM strategy. DSS play an important role in pest management, especially in relation to treatment application. DSS can be used as an umbrella term for any software-based support system that helps farmers make management and production decisions. The chapter will focus on providing an overview of DSS targeting the primary wheat pests covered in this book, we will cover both forecasting and prediction DSS available for wheat pest management as well as remote sensing and AI tools available for pest detection.