Attraction of Encyrtid wasps (Hymenoptera, Chalcidoidea: Encyrtidae) to a peach orchard agrocenosis in the Republic of Moldova

Abstract

A total of 26 species from 19 genera of Encyrtidae were recorded in peach orchards in the environs of Chisinau, Moldova. The species affecting the numbers of such peach pests as the Oriental fruit moth Grapholita molesta Busck, the peach twig borer Anarsia lineatella Z., the San Jose scale Diaspidiotus perniciosus Comst., and the gooseberry scale Eulecanium coryli L., are listed. The encyrtid parasites of the potential peach pests in Moldova, and also the hyperparasites and parasites of beneficial predatory insects, are considered. Proteincarbohydrate mixture (PCM) and methyl salicylate (MeSA) were most effective for attraction of encyrtid wasps in April and the first half of May, providing 7.0- and 3.2-fold increase in the parasite numbers as compared with the control. In the second decade of May and in June, the increase was 3.6 times on PCM, 1.8 times on MeSA, and 2.6 times on nectariferous plants. From the end of June the efficiency of PCM and MeSA only slightly exceeded the control level while nectariferous plants were most effective, yielding a more than twofold increase in the numbers of encyrtids.