Effectiveness of sweep net, yellow pan trap and malaise trap for sampling parasitic hymenoptera on tidal swamp rice

The presence of the parasitic Hymenoptera plays a vital role in pest management for sustainable agriculture. So, it is crucial to know the parasitoid species that exist in an agroecosystem. Sweep Net, Yellow Pan Trap, and Malaise Trap are often used to study the diversity of Hymenoptera parasitic in agroecosystems. This study aims to see the effectiveness of Sweep Net, Yellow Pan Trap, and Malaise Trap in trapping Parasitic Hymenoptera. The study was carried out at four sub-districts, namely are Batang Tuaka, Keritang, Reteh, and Tembilahan Hulu sub-district. The research was carried out by sampling with the transect line method. Sweep net, Yellow pan trap, and Malaise trap have trapped 5,732 individuals of Parasitic Hymenoptera on tidal swamp rice in Indragiri Hilir Regency. The Parasitic Hymenoptera consists of 10 superfamilies, 30 families, and 320 morphospecies. Malaise traps are the best for trapping parasitic Hymenoptera on tidal swamp rice. Malaise traps have been able to trap up to 62% of morphospecies and 81% of the abundance of individual Parasitic Hymenoptera on tidal swamp rice. Yellow pan traps trap 28% of morphospecies and 15% of the abundance of individual Parasitic Hymenoptera. The sweep net can trap 10% of morphospecies and 4% of the abundance of individual Parasitic Hymenoptera.Keywords: Parasitic Hymenoptera; trap; tidal swamp rice.

System of biological protection of corn against pests for organic farming

This study discusses promising methods of biological control of the main corn pests, based on the integrated use of pheromones, entomopathogenic preparations and the release of parasitic hymenoptera Trichogramma evanescens West. and Habrobracon hebetor Say. Seasonal dynamics of flying and the number of cotton moth Helicoverpa armigera Hbn. and Kuban click beetle Agriotes tauricus Heyd. were determined by capturing males with pheromone traps. Species composition of corn pests, the dynamics of flying and the number of dominant pests of the cotton moth H. armigera and corn moth Os. nubilalis are determined, the optimal dates for protective measures (release of entomophages - Trichogramma and Habrobracon, treatment with biological products) are set. As a result of the field assessment of the biological control system of the main corn pests, we determined the satisfactory efficacy of the mutually suppressing techniques based on using Trichogramma and Habrobracon entomophages and biological preparations based on entomopathogenic bacteria and viruses. The corn bioprotection efficacy against the stem corn moth was 84 % in the early hybrid and 94 % in the late one, against the cotton moth – 82,2 - 77,8 %, respectively.

Diversity and abundance of parasitic wasps (Insecta: Hymenoptera) of Bangladesh

A survey was conducted to study the diversity and population of parasitic Hymenoptera by using Malaise traps, from March 2014 to February 2015 in Chittagong University and Rajshahi University Campus. A total number of 173 genera was identified under 53 subfamilies, 23 families and 7 super families. Among the super families, the highest percentage of species individuals (59%) in Chalcidoidea, and of genera (55%) in Ichneumonoidea were recorded. The Species Richness (SR), H or H’, Hmax, Evenness, Community dominance and Question of similarity indices were applied to determine the diversity and abundance of parasitic hymenoptera. J. Biodivers. Conserv. Bioresour. Manag. 2019, 5(2): 63-68

Venomics of the ectoparasitoid wasp Bracon nigricans

Background Venom is one of the most important sources of regulation factors used by parasitic Hymenoptera to redirect host physiology in favour of the developing offspring. This has stimulated a number of studies, both at functional and “omics” level, which, however, are still quite limited for ectophagous parasitoids that permanently paralyze and suppress their victims (i.e., idiobiont parasitoids). Results Here we present a combined transcriptomic and proteomic study of the venom of the generalist idiobiont wasp Bracon nigricans, an ectophagous larval parasitoid of different lepidopteran species, for which we recently described the host regulation strategy and the functional role of the venom in the induction of physiological changes in parasitized hosts. The experimental approach used led to the identification of the main components of B. nigricans venom involved in host regulation. Enzymes degrading lipids, proteins and carbohydrates are likely involved in the mobilization of storage nutrients from the fat body and may concurrently be responsible for the release of neurotoxic fatty acids inducing paralysis, and for the modulation of host immune responses. Conclusion The present work contributes to fill the gap of knowledge on venom composition in ectoparasitoid wasps, and, along with our previous physiological study on this species, provides the foundation on which to develop a functional model of host regulation, based both on physiological and molecular data. This paves the way towards a better understanding of parasitism evolution in the basal lineages of Hymenoptera and to the possible exploitation of venom as source of bioinsecticidal molecules.

Cerambycid Communities and Their Associated Hymenopteran Parasitoids From Major Hardwood Trees in Delaware: Implications for Biocontrol of Invasive Longhorned Beetles

Cerambycidae provide important ecological services in forests yet cause economic damage when they infest living trees. Parasitoids can regulate woodborer populations, providing considerable control of pest cerambycids. Identifying parasitoids of native cerambycids may be useful in managing cerambycid outbreaks and aid in new-association biocontrol of exotic invasive cerambycids. We investigated Cerambycidae and associated hymenopteran parasitoid communities infesting Acer rubrum, Pinus virginiana, and Carya tomentosa from a forest in Delaware from 2005 to 2012. Cerambycid abundance, diversity, and richness, as well as parasitoid abundance, were measured by collecting trees in different conditions: felled, girdled, and naturally infested. Effect of edge or interior red maple on cerambycid abundance, diversity, and richness was examined. Over 14,500 cerambycids of 56 species and 38 genera were collected during the 7-yr period. Eleven species represented 95% of all cerambycids collected. Treatment only affected red maple, showing increased cerambycid richness and diversity from naturally infested trees. Cerambycid richness and diversity were two times greater on hickory than other species when combining girdled and felled treatments. Over 19,000 parasitic Hymenoptera of 12 families emerged from woodborer-infested wood with >70% of individuals belonging to Braconidae. Thirteen known species, and two unknown species, of Braconidae were identified from a subsample of 495 specimens; Ontsira mellipes (Ashmead) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) and Rhoptrocentrus piceus Marshall (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) were the most abundant. This study provides fundamental information on native parasitoids associated with Cerambycidae, including cerambycid larval host associations. Parasitoids identified herein should be investigated for potential adaptation to invasive Cerambycidae to benefit invasive woodborer management.

Diversity of parasitic Hymenoptera in three rice-growing tracts of Tamil Nadu, India

Parasitic hymenoptera play a vital role in rice ecosystems as biocontrol agents of pests. Surveys were conducted from August 2015 to January 2016 in three rice growing zones in Tamil Nadu: western zone, Cauvery Delta zone, and high rainfall zone. A total of 3,151 parasitic hymenoptera were collected, of which 1,349 were collected from high rainfall zone, 1,082 from western zone, and 720 from Cauvery Delta zone. Platygastridae, Ichneumonidae, and Braconidae were the most abundant families in all the three zones. The species diversity, richness, evenness as well as beta diversity were computed for all three zones via Simpson’s, Shannon-Wiener and Margalef indices. The results showed the high rainfall zone to be the most diverse and the Cauvery Delta zone the least diverse, but with more evenness. Pairwise comparison of zones using Jaccard’s index showed 75–79% species similarity.

Exploring insect biodiversity: the parasitic Hymenoptera, chiefly Chalcidoidea, associated with seeds of asphodels (Xanthorrhoeaceae), with the description of nine new species belonging to Eurytomidae and Torymidae

An account is given of the communities of Chalcidoidea, mostly based upon species of Bruchophagus Ashmead (Eurytomidae), which feed as larvae in seeds of Asphodelus and Asphodeline (Xanthorrhoeaceae). Eight new species of Eurytomidae, namely B. abscedus Askew sp. n., B. asphodelinae Askew & Stojanova sp. n., B. gijswijti Askew & Ribes sp. n., B. insulare Delvare sp. n., B. lecomtei Delvare sp. n., B. ribesi Askew sp. n., Eurytoma genale Askew & Stojanova sp. n., and Aximopsis balajasi Delvare sp. n., are described together with the new species Idiomacromerus asphodeli Ribes sp. n. (Torymidae). Eurytoma setigera Mayr, 1878 is again synonymized with E. pistaciae Rondani, 1877 syn. rev. Puklina dillerae Doğanlar, 1993 and P. asphodelinae Boyadzhiev, 2003 are synonymized with P. depilata Graham, 1987 syn n. The use, respectively of the mitochondrial genes COI and Cyt B and of the nuclear gene EF1-α, allowed us to discriminate pairs of sibling species in the three genera of Eurytomidae and to circumscribe the limits of the hypervariable Eurytoma asphodeli Hedqvist, 1976. The trophic webs associated with five species/subspecies of asphodels are fully described and illustrated, the distributions of the chalcid wasps involved are figured, and the phenology of the most common species is quoted and figured.