Field superparasitism by Phymastichus coffea, a parasitoid of adult coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei

Abstract

AbstractSuperparasitism by Phymastichus coffea LaSalle (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae), a parasitoid of adults of the coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei (Ferrari) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae), was recorded under field conditions in a coffee plantation in Colombia. Parasitoid adults were released 1, 5, and 9 days after artificial infestations of 90‐, 150‐, and 210‐day‐old coffee berries with H. hampei females. The position of the beetle inside the berry and the number of P. coffea larvae per female host were assessed 10 days after each parasitoid release. Under laboratory conditions, P. coffea usually lays two eggs per host, one female and one male. In our studies, we often recorded more than six P. coffea larvae in an individual host and mean numbers of larvae per host ranged from two to 4.45. Superparasitism by P. coffea under field conditions was influenced by the age of the coffee berries, which is the most important factor determining the speed of penetration by H. hampei, and therefore the time the beetles are exposed to a P. coffea attack. The number of parasitoid larvae in each H. hampei female gradually decreased with the age of the berry, and also linearly decreased with the time of parasitoid release. Age‐dependent effects of coffee berries that alter the ratio of available hosts to searching parasitoids by providing refuges to the herbivore, largely determine the extent of superparasitism of H. hampei by P. coffea under fields conditions in Colombia.