The biology of Meteorus gyrator (Hymenoptera : Braconidae), a solitary endoparasitoid of the tomato moth, Lacanobia oleracea (Lepidoptera : Noctuidae)

There is a need to identify potential biological control agents for use aga inst lepidopterous pests in greenhouses. The solitary endoparasitoid Meteor us gyrator (Thunberg) attacks a range of macrolepidopterous larvae, includi ng those of some important horticultural pest species. Laboratory trials de signed to investigate the biology of M. gyrator on larvae of the tomato mot h, Lacanobia oleracea Linnaeus, reveal that this parasitoid is capable of p arasitizing all larval stages of its host, third instars being parasitized most frequently. Each female parasitoid lives for up to 40 days (at 25 degr ees C), ovipositing into an average of 78 hosts. Preadult development is ra pid (similar to 2 weeks), and the sex ratio of offspring is 1:1. Parasitism by M. gyrator suppresses the growth of both early and late host instars, a nd there is a concomitant reduction in the amount of food consumed (overall feeding reduction over a 12 day period is 68%). Our results indicate that inoculative releases of M. gyrator could provide effective biological contr ol of L. oleracea and other noctuid pests of greenhouses.