Abstract

AbstractIn Japan, two species of the genus Reclinervellus were found to attack a single host spider, Cyclosa octotuberculata (Araneae). One of these, Reclinervellus tuberculatus comb. nov., winters as a tender larva and has at least two generations a year. This species laid its egg on the anterior face of the host's abdomen. Prior to laying an egg the female repeatedly rubbed her ovipositor over the dorsal and lateral surfaces of the host's abdomen near the base for more than 25 min. The hatched larva fixed itself at the position where the egg was laid, and developed by consuming the host's body fluids. The other species, R. masumotoi sp. nov., is closely related to R. tuberculatus but is easily distinguished from it by having a very weakly reclivous Cu vein in the hindwing, a less developed carina of the propodeum, a shorter ovipositor and more blackish coloration of the mesoscutum. Although this species is sympatric with R. tuberculatus and attacks the same host, the position of the egg and larva on the host's body is quite different from that of R. tuberculatus. The egg of this species was laid on the posterior surface of the host's abdomen and the larva matured 10–20 days earlier than those of R. tuberculatus. Via these modes of parasitism R. masumotoi seemed to escape from competition with R. tuberculatus at the stage of oviposition and out‐competed it when a single host individual bore larvae of both species. Previous records of parasitoids reared from C. octotuberculata were reviewed and found to include records of both species.

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