Mass rearing and augmentative releases of the native parasitoid Chouioia cunea for biological control of the introduced fall webworm Hyphantria cunea in China

Authors: Yang, Zhong-qi; Wei, Jian-rong; Wang, Xiao-yi

Source: BioControl, Volume 51, Number 4, August 2006 , pp. 401-418(18)

Publisher: Springer

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Abstract:

The fall webworm, Hyphantria cunea Drury, is an economically important introduced pest in China. A native pupal endoparasitoid, Chouioia cunea Yang (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae, Tetrastichinae) causes considerable mortality of H. cunea pupae in some areas of China. Alternative hosts of C. cunea were tested to find potential substitute hosts for mass rearing the parasitoid. Antheraea pernyi Guerin-Meneville (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) was chosen as a surrogate host as a single pupa produced an average of 6552 wasps and a maximum of 11,256 per pupa. A mass-rearing technique and successful release program of this parasitoid is described. Parasitism by C. cunea in the areas where it was released averaged 67.74% and was usually over 80%. Other native parasitoids, such as Coccygomimus disparis (Viereck), C. parnasae (Viereck) (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) and Exorita japonica Townes (Diptera: Tachnidae), caused the total average parasitism to exceed 90% on average, reaching a maximum of 96.28% in the release areas. These successful releases indicate that an introduced pest species can also be controlled by the mass-rearing and release of native parasitoids in the country of introduction.

Keywords: Chouioia cunea; factitious hosts; Hyphantria cunea; inundative release; mass rearing; native parasitoids

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10526-006-9010-z

Affiliations: 1: Email: yangzq@forestry.ac.cn

Publication date: 2006-08-01