Bulletin of Entomological Research (2011) 101, 573-579

C.A. Villagra, C.F. Pinto, M. Penna and H.M. Niemeyer (2011)
Male wing fanning by the aphid parasitoid Aphidius ervi (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) produces a courtship song
Bulletin of Entomological Research 101 (5), 573-579
Abstract: We, herein, report evidence that wing fanning by the aphid parasitoid Aphidius ervi Haliday (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) constitutes a courtship song. Complete removal of the forewings or only the distal half of them reduced male copulation success in comparison to intact males. Males that achieved copulation within the observation period produced wing fanning at a higher rate than males that did not copulate. Playback of wing fanning sound altered the behaviour of virgin females, increasing the time they devoted to grooming, as compared with subjects that were exposed to silence or white noise. Our findings contribute to the understanding of the acoustic dimension of the sensory modalities employed by this aphid parasitoid in sexual signalling.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Hermann M. Niemeyer

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.
	Malacosoma disstria		Canada (west)
Aphidius ervi (parasitoid)
Telenomus clisiocampae (parasitoid)	Malacosoma disstria		Canada (west)
Baryscapus malacosomae (parasitoid)	Malacosoma disstria		Canada (west)
Ooencyrtus clisiocampae (parasitoid)	Malacosoma disstria		Canada (west)