In biological control programs, natural enemies of pests are translocated, mass-reared and introduced as biological control agents. Following the release of these agents in their new ranges, their populations are subjected to new environmental conditions, including novel potential prey or hosts. In the post-release stage, with the decline of pest populations, the released biological control agents will suffer from a shortage of target prey or hosts. Some will therefore attack non-target organisms, which sustain the populations of agents and sometimes expand the range of controlled pests. On the other hand, there is growing concern about the side-effects of their prey or host expansion
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