Abstract
SummaryAn experiment to compare the effect of diverse ratios of 0–6 h old Microplitis rufiventris Kok. progeny within Spodoptera littoralis (Boisd.) larvae is described and the results discusssed. Five to 21% of parasite progeny was eliminated during the egg stage. Surplus parasite larvae were eliminated mainly by physical attack, physiological suppression and perhaps by encapsulation. Parasite larvae which escaped competition during their first instar were subjected to physiological suppression. Some of the super-numerary parasite larvae other than the winners survived competition mechanisms and developed in the host haemocoele. Nevertheless, most of these parasites suffered from moulting failure and emergence problems at the end of their endoparasitic development. The development of the winning parasite was retarded by 1–2 days during its egg-larval stage while the duration of its pupal stage was about the same as parasites from singly parasitized hosts.
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