BIOLOGY AND MORPHOLOGY OF CHELONUS SP. NR. CURVIMACULATUS (HYMENOPTERA, BRACONIDAE) AS A PARASITOID OF PECTINOPHORA-GOSSYPIELLA (LEPIDOPTERA, GELECHIIDAE)

A general description of the life stages of Chelonus sp. nr. curvimacu latus, an egg-larval parasitoid of pink bollworm, Pectinophora gossypi ella (Saunders), is presented. Pink bollworms were reared in the labor atory on a wheat germ diet. At 29 degrees C, parasitoid eggs (0.12-0.1 8 mm) begin to eclose approximate to 22 h after oviposition. Three ins tars occur in this species. The 1st instar is endoparasitic and ranged in length from 0.14 mm (neonate) to 1.25 mm (approximate to 9 d old, end of the 1st stadium). The 2nd instar also is endoparasitic and is 1 .89-3.04 mm long. This stadium lasts approximate to 2-3 d. The 3rd ins tar is an average of 3.82 mm long and is endoparasitic early in its de velopment but becomes ectoparasitic toward the completion of its devel opment. This stadium lasts approximate to 3 d. The pupal stage lasts a pproximate to 6-7 d. Adult parasitoids begin to emerge approximate to 21 d after oviposition. Parasitized and unparasitized pink bollworm la rvae developed through 4 stadia. Larval head capsule widths, body leng ths, and weights of parasitized pink bollworms are significantly small er than those of unparasitized larvae during the 3rd and 4th stadia. P arasitized 4th-instar pink bollworms have a mean head width of 0.8687 mm, body length of 6.28 mm, and weight of 6.9 mg. Fourth-instar unpara sitized pink bollworm measurements were 1.0743 mm, 9.31 mm, and 17.7 m g, respectively.