Exploiting a pest insect species Sphenarium purpurascens for human consumption: ecological, social, and economic repercussions

Abstract

Insect species, especially those considered to be pests, can be exploited for human consumption. One of the most devastating pest insect species in central Mexico is the grasshopper Sphenarium purpurascens. Here we develop a sustainable exploitation strategy that produces a considerable biomass of S. purpurascens while minimising the damage they cause to agricultural fields by changing the chemical control methods to a mechanical method. In this model the biomass-per-stage of grasshoppers that can be extracted annually using the mechanical method was calculated and their potential abundance was estimated using Maxent. With a calculated population density of 10-55 individuals of S. purpurascens per m2 over approximately 1,050,000 ha of the agroecosystems in Mexico, the estimated biomass of this insect averaged 350,000 tons per year (generating a gross income of US$ 3.5×108 million). Unlike chemical control methods, mechanical control has no toxic effects on human populations or other species inside or outside of the agroecosystems. Promoting a change from chemical to mechanical control methods of pest species could greatly impact on the health of millions of people globally and on the environment, reducing carbon dioxide and methane emissions, land clearing and the use of pesticides while obtaining economic profit.