DISTRIBUTION AND TEPHRITID HOSTS (DIPTERA) OF BRACONID PARASITOIDS (HYMENOPTERA) IN BRAZIL

Tephritid parasitoids reared from 26 different host fruit species show ed remarkably little diversity across 21 Brazilian counties. The major ity of the parasitoids (81.4%) belonged to the braconid subfamily Opii nae, with Doryctobracon areolatus (Szepligeti) the most commonly encou ntered species. Four other opiines, namely D. brasiliensis (Szepligeti ), Opius bellus Gahan, sp. and Utetes (Bracanastrepha) anastrephae (Vi ereck) also reared, but in much smaller numbers. Asobara anastrephae ( Muesebeck), an alysiine braconid parasitoid of tephritids, accounted f or an additional 18.6% of the individuals reared from tephritids. The hosts and distribution patterns of the braconid parasitoids of Brazili an fruit-infesting Tephritidae are summarized.