WHAT IS BIOCONTROL?
Classical biological control (biocontrol) is the selection and introduction of a natural enemy of an invasive plant or insect pest which suppresses that pest in its home range, and the “reuniting” of this natural enemy with the invasive pest to provide long-term, cost-effective, and sustainable pest management. There are other forms of biocontrol, including augmentative and conservation biocontrol (learn more on those here), but this site does not focus on those types.
To explain the science behind modern biocontrol, the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and the state’s Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR) developed a video to raise awareness and clear up misconceptions.