1. The length of time that a gall-forming midge, Rhopalomyia californi
ca, was vulnerable to attack by four parasitoid species was measured i
n the field at two locations. 2. The midge had a restricted window of
vulnerability to each of the parasitoid species, but similar windows o
f vulnerability were found at the two sites. 3. A stage-structured mod
el was used to illustrate that the length of the vulnerable window sho
uld have no effect on the fraction parasitized by a single parasitoid
species if that species is the only parasitoid attacking the host in a
coupled host-parasitoid interaction. However, the length of the windo
w of vulnerability can have a positive effect on the fraction parasiti
zed by a species in competition with other parasitoid species. 4. The
length of the window of vulnerability can help explain the relative fi
eld abundance of four of the common parasitoid species of R.californic
a.