Review: Role of Syrphids (Diptera: Syrphidae) as Biotic Agents

The agriculture sector is important in the overall economy of Pakistan. There are many limiting factors in crop production. The two important factors are pest damage and pollination in addition to many others. Pest damage remained a serious problem since the dawn of human civilization. With the advancement of knowledge regarding safety of environment, pests are now tackled through Integrated Pest Management (IPM) techniques. In IPM, biological control through use of natural enemies is quite significant and the favored approach. Pollination is an essential ecosystem service. Effective pollination results in increased crop production, quality improvement and more seed production. One of the important groups of pollinators is Syrphid. About 84 species are reported from Pakistan. However, they have not been practically and effectively applied in both IPM and pollination contexts.