Effectiveness of common bean fly (Ophiomyia spp.) control methods: a meta–analysis with implications for resistance breeding

Abstract The bean fly ( Ophiomyia spp.) is one of the most destructive field pests of the common bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris L.), notably in Eastern and Southern Africa. Several studies have recommended a range of methods for bean fly control. Nevertheless, the effectiveness of management practices and their impact on grain yield is not fully understood to help prioritize and guide integrated management of the pest spearheaded by host plant resistance. A meta-analysis was conducted involving 18 studies on bean fly control methods. The control methods had effect sizes (ES) ranging from small (0.19) to large (1.38). The chemical and integrated control methods had the highest ES values of 1.21 and 1.38, respectively, but had wide 95% confidence intervals, while the genetic control had a low ES of 0.19, indicating a low level of bean fly-resistant lines in the current breeding stocks. The metadata suggests variable efficacy of the control methods, and breeding for host resistance is yet to be up-scaled to control the bean fly and bolster grain yield effectively. No studies have reported the effectiveness of biological control against bean fly based on the grain yield of candidate common bean genotypes. Overall, the genetic control method with an ES (0.19) contributed to a relatively small effect, with CIs of − 0.8 and 0.56 overlapping the null effect. This suggests that the level of bean fly resistance in the available genetic pool is still low, resulting in low yield potential, which requires concerted breeding.