Abstract: Ultraviolet (UV) radiation, particularly in the UV-A + B range (280-400 nm) is a fraction of the solar spectrum that regulates almost every aspect of insect behaviour, including orientation towards hosts, alighting, arrestment and feeding behaviour. To study the role of UV radiation on the flight activity of five insect species of agricultural importance (pests Myzus persicae, Bemisia tabaci and Tuta absoluta, and natural enemies Aphidius colemani and Sphaerophoria rueppellii), one-chamber tunnels were covered with six cladding materials with different light transmittance properties ranging from 2% to 83% UV and 54% to 85% photosynthetically active radiation (PAR). Inside each tunnel, insects were released from tubes placed in a platform suspended from the ceiling. Specific targets varying with insect species were placed at different distances from the platform. Evaluation parameters were designed for each insect and tested separately. The ability of insects to leave the platform was assessed, as well as the number of captures, eggs or mummies in each target, either sticky traps or plants. Our results suggest differences in flight activity among insect species and UV-blocking nets. The UV-opaque film drastically prevented aphids, and whiteflies from flying outside the tubes whereas T. absoluta, syrphids and parasitoids were not affected. Aphid flight behaviour was affected by the UV-opaque film compared to the other nets, especially in the furthest target of the tunnel. Fewer aphids reached distant traps under UV-absorbing nets, and significantly more aphids could fly to the end of tunnels covered with non-UV-blocking materials. Orientation of B. tabaci and T. absoluta was also negatively affected by the UV-opaque film although in a different trend. Unlike aphids, differences in B. tabaci captures were mainly found in the closest targets. UV transmittance did not have any effects on parasitoids, and S. rueppellii, implying cues other than visual for these insects under our experimental conditions. Further effects of photoselective enclosures on greenhouse pests and their natural enemies are discussed.

Abstract: The aim of the present paper is to exemplify and discuss the importance of farm scale modeling in relation to The EU Joint Programming Initiative (JPI-FACCE) knowledge hub on Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change project.In particular, livestock production systems include complex interactions, with non-linear relationships between input factors, production, emissions, local climate as well as natural resources (e.g. soil types, rotational land versus permanent grasslands etc.). Moreover, management options pursued by the different types of farmers and other relevant decision makers are important to integrate. Consequently, results of regional scale impact assessments depend on the farming systems model approach, the approach to upscale results, and the inclusion of the relevant stakeholders and decision makers at the scales considered.Different farming systems models are reviewed, including the existing dynamic and static biophysical models. Finally, procedures for upscaling and validity testing of synthesized model results at regional scales are presented. Based on a discussion of these procedures, recommendations for hot-spot analyses in farming systems with regard to integrated climate change adaptation and mitigation for a sustainable food production are synthesized, and the potentials for integration of recommended policies and farm management options into overarching models in order to assess their impact on the regional to global scales are discussed. No Label