Reproductive Biology and Functional Response ofDineulophus phtorimaeae, a Natural Enemy of the Tomato Moth,Tuta absoluta

Abstract

The tomato moth, Tuta absoluta (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae), is a major pest in South America and is at present an important invasive species in the Mediterranean Basin. The larval stadium mines leaves, stems, and fruits, and chemical control is the most used control method in both its original range and the invaded distribution regions. Since current T. absoluta control strategies seem limited, biological control is a prominent tool to be applied abroad. The naturally occurring larval ectoparasitoid in Argentina and Chile Dineulophus phtorimaeae (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) has been reported to have potential biocontrol efficiency. In this study, the ovigeny strategy of D. phtorimaeae was analyzed throughout the adult female lifetime, and the functional response of females offered a range of 2–15 T. absoluta larvae was measured over a 48-hour period. Mean D. phtorimaeae egg load was 4.15 eggs, and egg production resulted in extremely synovigenic behavior. Meanwhile, a decreasing number of eggs, due to resorption, was found. Proportions of attacked (host-fed and/or parasitized) and only host-fed hosts by the ectoparasitoid were density independent for the tested host range, exhibiting a type I functional response to T. absoluta, with an attack rate of 0.20 host larvae. Meanings of this reproductive strategy in evolutionary time as well as the consequences for augmentative biological control programs are discussed.

Ontogeny and reproductive biology of Diadegma semiclausum (Hym.: Ichneumonidae), a larval endoparasitoid of Diamondback Moth, Plutella xylostella (Lep.: Plutellidae)

“…Thus, perhaps it depends on the parasitoid egg development strategy (proovigeny versus synovigeny), which is similar to the observation of Savino et al (2012) who demonstrated mature egg lengths in Dineulophus phtorimaeae (extremely synovigenic) that were equal in size over the range of the adult female lifetime. In contrast to our study, Ghara and Borges (2010) had shown that the Apocryptophagus agraensis (proovigenic parasitoid) produces fewer but larger eggs over her lifetime.…”

Management of Tuta absoluta Meyrick (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) Using Biopesticides on Tomato Crop under Greenhouse Conditions

“…The moth originates from South America and was spread to Europe, North Africa, Asia and recently in the Middle East over the past ten years (Desneux, 2011;FAO, 2016;Alberto Urbaneja, 2012). Their larvae damage leaves, fruits, and stems (Savino et al, 2012), causing considerable losses on tomato yield. Losses of 50-100% have been reported on tomato (EPPO, 2005;Gebrelebanos, 2015).…”

Functional response and egg distribution among hosts byPseudapanteles dignus, a larval endoparasitoid ofTuta absoluta

“…Finally, the ectoparasitoid Dineulophus phthorimaeae de Santis (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) shows density-independent proportions of parasitized and host-fed larvae (type I FR) (Savino et al, 2012).…”