Potential Use of Trichogramma pintoi as a Biocontrol Agent Against Heortia vitessoides (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae)

Abstract

Abstract Heortia vitessoides Moore is the most serious insect defoliator of Aquilaria sinensis (Lour.) Gilg, an endangered and economically important plant that produces highly prized agarwood. Samples from recently identified indigenous natural populations of Trichogramma pintoi Voegele were collected from H. vitessoides eggs in A. sinensis forests in Yunnan Province, China. To assess the potential capacity of this parasitoid for use as a biological control agent, its functional response, female reproductive potential, and male insemination capacity were investigated in this study. Females successfully parasitized 1- to 4-d-old eggs of H. vitessoides but failed to parasitize 5- to 8-d-old eggs. The parasitoid exhibited a Holling type II functional response, and the estimated maximum numbers of 1- to 4-d-old H. vitessoides eggs parasitized by a single T. pintoi female were 38.1, 29.8, 26.0, and 22.2 eggs over a 24-h period, respectively. Additionally, the parasitoid’s average lifetime fecundity was 89.8 ± 2.5 eggs, of which 66.26% were laid within the first 2 d. The average number of total females that mated with a male in his lifetime (4.70 ± 0.13 d) was 10.4, and the average number of total daughters of a male was 292.1. On day 1 of male adult life, the greatest number of females were inseminated by males, and the most daughters were produced; however, the number of copulations and insemination ability decreased rapidly with male age. These results suggest that T. pintoi is a promising candidate for inundative release against H. vitessoides in China, and these findings will guide efforts in achieving mass production of this parasitoid.