A process for controlling pests in which the pests or the plants threatened by attack with pests are treated with a 2-anilinopyridine of the formula I ##STR1## where the substituents have the following meanings: R.sup.1 is alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, haloalkyl, alkoxyalkyl, alkylthioalkyl, cycloalkyl, substituted cycloalkyl, alkoxy, haloalkoxy, substituted alkyl, alkenyloxy, alkynyloxy, halogen, CN, SCN, formyl, CH.dbd.NOR.sub.5, CH.dbd.NR.sub.6, CH.sub.2 NHR.sub.6R.sup.5 is hydrogen, unsubstituted or substituted alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, COR.sup.7 or unsubstituted or substituted phenyl,R.sup.6 is hydrogen, alkyl, unsubstituted or substituted cycloalkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl or unsubstituted or substituted phenyl,R.sup.2 is alkyl, alkenyl, alkynyl, haloalkyl or cycloalkylR.sup.3 is hydrogen, CN, S(O).sub.n R.sup.8 or COR.sup.9,R.sup.8 is alkyl or substituted phenyl,R.sup.9 is hydrogen, alkyl, haloalkyl, cycloalkyl, phenyl or benzyl,R.sup.4 is hydrogen, halogen, alkyl, haloalkyl, alkoxy or haloalkoxy or cyano, and 2-anilinopyridines and also use of the compounds for the production of pesticides are described.