Neotropical Entomology (2022) 51, 593-599

Renata Cunha Pereira, Omar Bailez, José Olívio Lopes Vieira-Júnior, Gerson Adriano Silva, Anália Arêdes and Ana Maria Viana-Bailez (2022)
Host size preference of the leafcutter ant parasitoid Eibesfeldtphora tonhascai (Diptera: Phoridae)
Neotropical Entomology 51 (4), 593-599
Abstract: Eibesfeldtphora tonhascai Brown (Diptera: Phoridae) is a natural enemy of Atta sexdens Linnaeus and Atta laevigata Smith and is considered a promising candidate for the biological control of these ants. The aim of this study was to verify if E. tonhascai has a preference for specific sizes of A. sexdens foragers and whether this parasitoid demonstrated host species preference when comparing parasitism of A. sexdens and A. laevigata. Worker ants were classified into four different size groups and introduced into an attack arena with one E. tonhascai female. To verify host species preference, both A. sexdens and A. laevigata workers were placed in the attack arena together with one E. tonhascai female. A no-choice test was also performed, when each ant species was offered to a phorid female at different times. Eibesfeldtphora tonhascai performed the highest number of inspection flights, attempted attacks, and actual attacks against A. sexdens workers with a cephalic capsule size of 3–5 mm. When comparing attacks on A. sexdens and A. laevigata workers, they were equally inspected, attacked, and the total parasitism rates were similar. However, the phorid adult emergence rate was significantly higher in the A. sexdens parasitized workers. We conclude that E. tonhascai females express preference for parasitizing larger hosts (cephalic capsule width of 3–5 mm), but do not display a preference for host species when comparing A. sexdens versus A. laevigata, and thus can similarly contribute to both leafcutter ants' natural biological control.
(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): Omar E. Bailez, Gerson A. Silva, Ana Maria Viana-Bailez

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.
	Atta sexdens
	Atta laevigata
Eibesfeldtphora tonhascai (parasitoid)	Atta sexdens
Eibesfeldtphora tonhascai (parasitoid)	Atta laevigata