Attraction of Prorops Nasuta (Hymenoptera: Bethylidae), a Parasitoid of the Coffee Berry Borer (Coleoptera: Curculionidae), to Host-Associated Olfactory Cues

Abstract

Abstract The parasitoid Prorops nasuta Waterston (Hymenoptera: Bethylidae) is a wasp of the coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei (Ferrari) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae). In this study, the attractiveness of different volatiles to P. nasuta was studied in the laboratory using a Y-tube olfactometer. Female wasps were attracted to coffee berry borer-infested coffee berries but not to uninfested or artificially damaged berries. Full-grown larvae and pupae, and dust/frass of H. hampei isolated from infested berries, were attractive to parasitoid females, whereas immature coffee berry borer and dust/frass originating from coffee berry borer reared on an artificial diet were not. Adult coffee berry borer, derived from both infested berries or artificial diet, were not attractive to parasitoids. Females of P. nasuta did not show a preference for volatiles released from unparasitized versus parasitized hosts independent of the time since parasitization. Wasp attraction was influenced by the amount and age of dust/frass but not by the density of immature larvae. These findings show that host searching behavior of P. nasuta is mediated by chemical cues emitted from the coffee berry-H. hampei complex.