Abstract
Ceranisus menes is an effective parasitoid of Thrips palmi. To determine whether C. menes reared on Frankliniella intonsa can develop and reproduce on T. palmi, we studied the effects of these two host species on development and reproduction of a thelytokous strain of this parasitoid in the laboratory. There was no significant difference in total developmental time of the parasitoid between the two host species. C. menes reared on F. intonsa were larger than those reared on T. palmi. The reproduction of C. menes was examined for three host treatments: (1) the parasitoid reared on F. intonsa was allowed to oviposit in F. intonsa (F. intonsa to F. intonsa), (2) F. intonsa to T. palmi and (3) T. palmi to T. palmi. Adult longevity and total fecundity of C. menes did not differ significantly among those treatments. This thelytokous strain of C. menes had a higher reproductive rate than both host species. We conclude that the mass-reared thelytokous C. menes strain using F. intonsa may be a viable option in controlling T. palmi.
