Composition of Braconidae (Hymenoptera) Fauna in Citrus Orchards Surrounded by Amazonian Secondary Forest

Abstract

The Braconidae composition of two Citrus orchards surrounded by Amazon rainforest was investigated. To compare the composition of Braconidae in orchards and forest were installed eighteen modified Malaise traps distributed in a gradient that started inside the orchard 80 meters from the edge extending up to 80meters from the border inside the forest. The composition of Braconidae differed between forest and orchard, abundance in orchard was lower when compared with the forest and the diversity were higher inside forest. Differences found in the composition is associated with factors such as the presence of hosts in the environment. Was found some potential genera like Utetes, and Pholetesor that can be used in biological control of citrus pests.

New Braconidae (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonoidea) records from Cuniã Ecological Station, Porto Velho, Rondônia, Brazilian Western Amazon

“…Microgastrinae constitutes the largest subfamily of Braconidae with almost 3,000 valid species and worldwide distribution in all the main terrestrial ecosystems (Fernandez-Triana et al, 2020), and also in Brazil (Restello & Penteado-Dias, 2006;Gadelha et al, 2012;Oliveira et al, 2017). Its high abundance and diversity of species is possible related to its gregarious habit, i.e.…”

“…Few works have studied general Braconidae diversity in the Amazon region, e.g., Gadelha et al (2012) in the Porto Velho Municipal Natural Reserve, Rondônia, and Oliveira et al (2017) in Citrus plantations surrounded by Amazon rainforest. The other studies focus on a specific group of braconids that are parasitoids of frugivorous larvae, e.g., Costa et al (2009) which found seven species of Braconidae in the Adolpho Ducke Forest Reserve in Manaus.…”

Composition and Functional Groups of Insects in Grain Crops from South-Ern Guanajuato

“…In their study, they found a greater diversity of coccinellids in the agroecosystems highly anthropized by human activities that increased the variety of landscapes. In turn, Oliveira et al [6], reported that a secondary forest surrounding citrus crops harbored a greater abundance of parasites of the Braconidae family, compared to the edges of secondary forest-citrus plantation landscapes. The foregoing highlights the role that vegetation has on the diversity and composition of insects in agroecosystems, in addition to the ecosystem services they offer concerning the crops, some of them being: pollination, predation, and degradation of organic matter, among others.…”