Florida Entomologist (2013) 96, 1635-1638

Wagner De Souza Tavares, Jesusa Crisostomo Legaspi, Marcelo Teixeira Tavares, Enio Nunez, Rosenilson Pinto and José Cola Zanuncio (2013)
Brachymeria koehleri (Hymenoptera: Chalcididae) as a hyperparasitoid of Lespesia melloi (Diptera: Tachinidae) pupae in Thagona tibialis (Lepidoptera: Lymantriidae) caterpillars in Brazil
Florida Entomologist 96 (4), 1635-1638
Abstract: Hyperparasitoids use the immature offspring of other parasitoids for their development, which may reduce the efficiency of biological control. The aim of this study was to evaluate the hyperparasitoidism by Brachymeria koehleri Blanchard (Hymenoptera: Chalcididae) in Lespesia melloi Gil-Santana, Nunez and Nihei (Diptera: Tachinidae) pupae parasitizing Thagona tibialis Walker (Lepidoptera: Lymantriidae) caterpillars in Brazil. Fifty pupae of various ages of T. tibialis were collected after the caterpillars had defoliated a Terminalia catappa L. (Combretaceae) plant on the campus of the Federal University of Viçosa (Viçosa, Minas Gérais, Brazil). Each pupae was held individually under controlled conditions until the emergence of either the lepidopteran or the parasitoid. Thirteen T. tibialis pupae yielded L. melloi puparia, which resulted in the emergence of 8 L. melloi individuals, 1 B. koehleri female, and 4 unviable pupae. This is the first report of hyperparasitism by B. koehleri of L. melloi pupae parasitizing T. tibialis caterpillars in Brazil.
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Database assignments for author(s): José Cola Zanuncio, Jesusa Crisostomo Legaspi, W. de S. Tavares

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
biocontrol - natural enemies
Research topic(s) for beneficials or antagonists:
general biology - morphology - evolution

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Thagona tibialis	Terminalia (genus)	Brazil (south)