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27 December 2017 Performance of Pseudapanteles dignus (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), a Natural Enemy of Tuta absoluta (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) in Eggplant
Nadia G. Salas Gervassio, María G. Luna, Franco D'Auro, Norma E. Sánchez
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Abstract

Pseudapanteles dignus (Muesebeck; Hymenoptera: Braconidae) is an American endoparasitoid that attacks the South American tomato leafminer Tuta absoluta (Meyrick; Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae). The interaction between P. dignus and T. absoluta in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.; Solanales: Solanaceae) crops has demonstrated that this enemy exhibits some desirable ecological traits as an effective biological control agent of this pest. With the aim of extending the use of P. dignus to other solanaceous crops, laboratory experiments were carried out to assess some life history traits and the parasitism efficiency when parasitizing T. absoluta larvae fed on eggplant (Solanum melongena L.; Solanales: Solanaceae). Rearings and experiments were conducted at 25 ± 2°C, ≈70% RH, and 14:10 (L:D) h photoperiod, and T. absoluta was fed with eggplant. P. dignus developmental times of immature stages were lower (∼ 5 d) on S. melongena than on S. lycopersicum.The female did not exhibit a pre-reproductive period, and its oviposition period lasted longer (∼ 4 d) than that determined in tomato plants. Adult longevity was ca. 24 d for both sexes. Females produced ca. 61 cocoons during their lives and the maximum daily percentage of parasitism was 50% at the first day of adult emergence. Functional response of P. dignus on eggplant was density-independent of the host density offered, as in tomato plant, and the instantaneous attack rate (a′) was 0.24 attacked larvae/ available larvae, in 24 h. Our results indicate that although there are differences, P. dignus would have a similar performance in eggplant and tomato in terms of its efficacy in the control of T. absoluta.

© The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.
Nadia G. Salas Gervassio, María G. Luna, Franco D'Auro, and Norma E. Sánchez "Performance of Pseudapanteles dignus (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), a Natural Enemy of Tuta absoluta (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) in Eggplant," Journal of Economic Entomology 111(2), 528-532, (27 December 2017). https://doi.org/10.1093/jee/tox353
Received: 25 July 2017; Accepted: 28 November 2017; Published: 27 December 2017
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KEYWORDS
biocontrol agent
parasitoid
Solanaceae
Solanum melongena
South American tomato leafminer
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