Bruchids and Legumes: Economics, Ecology and Coevolution

Book excerpt: In 1980, the International Symposium on the Ecology of Bruchids Attacking Legumes (Pulses), organized by Dr. Labeyrie, was held at Tours, France. Since then, there has been tremendous progress in the area of Bruchid and Legume research. At the same time, as we face the problems of world-wide population explosion and food shortage, the importance of legumes as the world's major protein source is rapidly increasing, especial ly in tropical regions. Thus, it seemed appropriate to hold the Second Symposium in order to review the recent progress in the control of Bruchids and in the biology and ecology of Bruchids and legumes. This is an important part of the search for ways to integrate these fields with a common perspective. The Second International Symposium on Bruchids and Legumes (ISBL-II) was held in September 6-9, 1989 at Okayama, Japan under the joint auspices of the Japanese Society of Applied Entomology and Zoology and of the Foundation for Advancement of International Science. Significant contributions have originated in Japan on the study of Bruchid and legumes. Most notably, the study on population ecology by Professor S.