Abstract
Individuals of two populations of Trichogramma maxacalii (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) were collected from eggs of Euselasia apisaon (Lepidoptera: Riodinidae), a lepidopteran defoliator of Eucalyptus, in plantations in the states of São Paulo and Minas Gerais, Brazil. This study investigated the sex ratio, number of parasitoids per egg, and longevity of individuals of these two populations of T. maxacalii, when this parasitoid was reared receiving eggs of the factitious host Anagasta kuehniella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) in different periods after emergence, and with or without honey. Sex ratio of T. maxacalii varied from 0.44 to 0.60, and was affected by the interaction between populations, availability of food (honey), and length of time in which the parasitoid stayed without host eggs after their emergence. The population of T. maxacalii collected in São Paulo produced a larger number of individuals per egg of the host A. kuehniella and lived longer when fed.
Highlights
Trichogramma species are the most studied group worldwide of egg parasitoids for biological control due to their efficiency and easy maintenance under laboratory conditions (Parra & Zucchi, 1997)
The objective of this study was to investigate some biological characteristics of two populations of the parasitoid T. maxacalii in eggs of A. kuehniella to determine if this factitious host is appropriate for their mass rearing, and to identify the best way to rear them in the laboratory
Sex ratio The sex ratio of T. maxacalii was affected by the interaction between the population and presence of food and by the time in which adults of T. maxacalii were left without eggs of the host (Table 1)
Summary
Trichogramma species are the most studied group worldwide of egg parasitoids for biological control due to their efficiency and easy maintenance under laboratory conditions (Parra & Zucchi, 1997) These natural enemies are used in more than 30 countries in biological control programs against insect pests in over 30 cultures (Wajnberg & Hassan, 1994). In Brazil, studies with Trichogramma species started with the importation and mass rearing of Trichogramma minutum (Riley) for control of the sugarcane borer Diatraea saccharalis (Fabricius) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) (Pratissoli, 1986) Parasitoids of this group are promising control agents against pests in many agricultural and forest crops (Parra & Zucchi, 1997). Moraes et al (1983) found Trichogramma demoraesi (Nagaraja) and Trichogramma soaresi (Nagaraja); Brun et al (1984) described Trichogramma manicobai, Trichogramma caiaposi, and Trichogramma acacioi; and Voegelé & Pointel (1980) and Oliveira et al (2000) found Trichogramma maxacalii (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae), all of them as parasitoids of lepidopteran pest species in Eucalyptus plantations
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