SUITABILITY OF MEXICAN RICE BORER (LEPIDOPTERA, PYRALIDAE) AS A HOST FOR PEDIOBIUS-FURVUS (HYMENOPTERA, EULOPHIDAE)

The suitability of Mexican rice borer, Eoreuma loftini (Dyar) as a fac titious (nonnatural) host for Pediobus furvus (Gahan) was examined. E. loftini was an acceptable and suitable host for oviposition and devel opment by P. furvus. Both acceptability and suitability were affected by host pupal age. Host acceptability was initially relatively constan t, declining rapidly when host pupae reached and surpassed 7 d of age. Suitability of young E. loftini pupae as a host for P. furvus was low (26.0 and 19.9% for 1- and 2-d-old pupae, respectively), increasing t o 67.0% for 5-d-old pupae and then declining rapidly. Within-brood sur vival of parasitoid progeny was affected by both host ape and weight w ith small, young pupae exhibiting lower within-brood survival (approxi mate to 37%). Within-brood survival was highest in 5-d-old E. loftini pupae across all host weights. Progeny production per host increased w ith host weight. Prepupae of E. loftini were also suitable for parasit ism but less so than pupae.