The effect of resource aggregation at different scales: optimal foraging behavior of Cotesia rubecula.

Optimal patch-leaving behavior: A case study using the parasitoid <i>Cotesia rubecula</i>

1. Parasitoids are predicted to spend longer in patches with more hosts, but previous work on Cotesia rubecula (Marshall) has not upheld this prediction. Tests of theoretical predictions may be affected by the definition of patch leaving behavior, which is often ambiguous. 2. In this study whole plants were considered as patches and assumed that wasps move within patches by means of walking or ...

Optimal Time Allocation in Parasitic Wasps Searching for Hosts and Food

Many species of parasitic wasp feed on sugar sources such as nectar and honeydew in order to replenish their energy reserves and so extend their life expectancy, which is often correlated with higher reproductive success. Recent research suggests that carbohydrates are also a key component in flight fuel in such insects. The importance of sugar in fuelling locomotion suggests location of sugar-...

Introduction and evaluation of Cotesia rubecula, a parasitoid of Pieris rapae in New Zealand

The host specificity of Cotesia rubecula (Marshall) was examined through literature searches, behavioural and ecological observations, and host specificity tests of a South Australian population. The results led to the importation and testing of C. rubecula in quarantine in New Zealand where its specificity to the genus Pieris was confirmed. Introduction of the parasitoid was approved and the s...

وجود پلیدناویروسها در غدد کالیکس زنبور پارازیتوئید (Cotesia rubecula ( Marshall) ( Hymenoptera:Braconidae

Herlihy et al.: Distribution of Cotesia rubecula and Displacement of C. glomerata 461 DISTRIBUTION OF COTESIA RUBECULA (HYMENOPTERA: BRACONIDAE) AND ITS DISPLACEMENT OF COTESIA GLOMERATA IN EASTERN NORTH AMERICA

A survey was conducted from May to Oct of 2011 of the parasitoid community of the imported cabbageworm, Pieris rapae (Lepidoptera: Pieridae), in cole crops in part of the eastern United States and southeastern Canada. The findings of our survey indicate that Cotesia rubecula (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) now occurs as far west as North Dakota and has become the dominant parasitoid of P. rapae in th...