Oviposition behavior of Coccidoxenoides peregrinus, a parasitoid of Planococcus ficus

The encyrtid parasitoid, Coccidoxenoides peregrinus has been used as a biol ogical control agent against the mealy-bugs Planococcus citri and Planococc us ficus. This study examined the behavior and host selection of C. peregri nus attacking P. ficus. Adult parasitoids were fed a 0.1% solution of acrid ine orange, a DNA binding dye used to label C. peregrinus eggs. In a choice test, adult parasitoids were offered equal numbers of first through fourth instars of P. ficus and behavior of C. peregrinus was filmed and analyzed. Acridine orange labeled ova of the parasitoids found within mealybug hosts fluoresced green under fluorescence microscopy and presence of fluorescing eggs in hosts was used to determine oviposition events. A time budget prep ared for C. peregrinus indicated that this parasitoid spent the majority of its time starching (71.64%) and grooming (15.06%). The average probing dur ation over all instars which led to oviposition from single visits was 4.93 +/-0.62 s. A total of 35.51% of probes from all attacks led to ovipositions . whereas 33.72% of single visits to hosts resulted in ovipositions. Detect ion of fluorescing acridine orange labeled eggs showed all instars of P. fi cus Were acceptable for oviposition by C. peregrinus. There was a significa nt preference to probe second, third, and fourth instars rather than first instars of P. ficus. Host feeding was not observed for this parasitoid.