Studying online
There are now 2 possible online modes for units:
Units with modes Online timetabled and Online flexible are available for any student to self-enrol and study online.
Click on an offering mode for more details.
Unit Overview
- Description
Integrated pest management (IPM) is a decision system used to limit the damage caused by pests (weeds, diseases and insects). Underpinning all successful IPM decisions, development and implementation, is having a sound understanding of ecological aspects of the target pest. Without such knowledge, few IPM strategies are ever successful. This unit explores the ecological basis and strategic approach to develop and deploy IPM for long term (5-10 years or more) and over large geographic scale (within farms or area-wide), highlighting examples of successful and failed pest control approaches, and how their success or failure relate to ecological aspects of pests. This unit also highlights the underlying economic implications as well as short- and long-term consequences of pest management decisions. The unit also covers different ecological approaches to IPM to decrease the risk and magnitude of pest outbreaks over time, and details pest epidemiology and the critical factors driving pest challenges across arable cropping, animal (feed-base), and horticultural industries. The main ecological strategies cover landscapes, lifecycle analyses, natural enemies of pests and their requirements, cultural controls and agronomy, host plant and animal resistance to pests, GMOs, and other more specific methods. It will also explore the role of environmental and agronomic factors, including climate change, crop rotations, etc. in altering the ecological basis and successful application of IPM. This unit aims to provide a clear understanding of the ecological knowledge required to understand, predict and secure successful IPM outcomes, and will demonstrate the consequences of not having this foundational ecological understanding. In particular, this unit will highlight the complexity and challenges affecting IPM outcomes due to interacting multiple environmental and agronomic factors. The unit is critical to students with interests in applied crop protection and also highly relevant to students with broader interests in crop, animal (i.e., feed-base) or horticultural production systems in particular, but also food security in general.
- Credit
- 6 points
- Offering
Availability Location Mode Not available in 2025 UWA (Perth) Face to face - Outcomes
Students are able to (1) demonstrate an understanding of the diverse ecological bases for developing and deploying successful pest control methods along with their varying advantages and disadvantages in different production systems; (2) explain the role and influence of changes in environmental factors and of differing farming practices, and particularly their interactions, on pest ecology and subsequent success or failure of IPM applications; (3) demonstrate an understanding of the major ecological bases and understanding needed for predicting pest outbreaks and epidemics; and (4) identify, compare and evaluate the ecological bases for developing and deploying effective and long-term pest management tactics.
- Assessment
Indicative assessments in this unit are as follows: (1) written report; (2) oral presentation; and (3) online quiz. Further information is available in the unit outline.
Student may be offered supplementary assessment in this unit if they meet the eligibility criteria.
- Unit Coordinator(s)
- Professor Martin Barbetti
- Unit rules
- Prerequisites
- Enrolment in72510 Master of Agricultural Science
- The availability of units in Semester 1, 2, etc. was correct at the time of publication but may be subject to change.
- All students are responsible for identifying when they need assistance to improve their academic learning, research, English language and numeracy skills; seeking out the services and resources available to help them; and applying what they learn. Students are encouraged to register for free online support through GETSmart; to help themselves to the extensive range of resources on UWA's STUDYSmarter website; and to participate in WRITESmart and (ma+hs)Smart drop-ins and workshops.
- Visit the Essential Textbooks website to see if any textbooks are required for this Unit. The website is updated regularly so content may change. Students are recommended to purchase Essential Textbooks, but a limited number of copies of all Essential Textbooks are held in the Library in print, and as an ebook where possible. Recommended readings for the unit can be accessed in Unit Readings directly through the Learning Management System (LMS).
- Contact hours provide an indication of the type and extent of in-class activities this unit may contain. The total amount of student work (including contact hours, assessment time, and self-study) will approximate 150 hours per 6 credit points.
Face to face
Predominantly face-to-face. On campus attendance required to complete this unit. May have accompanying resources online.
Online flexible
100% Online Unit. NO campus face-to-face attendance is required to complete this unit. All study requirements are online only. Unit is asynchronous delivery, with NO requirement for students to participate online at specific times.
Online timetabled
100% Online Unit. NO campus face-to-face attendance is required to complete this unit. All study requirements are online only. Unit includes some synchronous components, with a requirement for students to participate online at specific times.
Online Restricted
Not available for self-enrolment. Students access this mode by contacting their student office through AskUWA. 100% Online Unit.
NO campus face-to-face attendance. All study and assessment requirements are online only. Unit includes some timetabled activities, with a requirement for students to participate online at specific times. In exceptional cases (noted in the Handbook) students may be required to participate in face-to-face laboratory classes when a return to UWA’s Crawley campus becomes possible in order to be awarded a final grade.
External
No attendance or regular contact is required, and all study requirements are completed either via correspondence and/or online submission.
Off-campus
Regular attendance is not required, but student attends the institution face to face on an agreed schedule for purposes of supervision and/or instruction.
Multi-mode
Multiple modes of delivery. Unit includes a mix of online and on-campus study requirements. On campus attendance for some activities is required to complete this unit.