Seasonal Prevalence of Egg Parasitoids Attacking Piezodorus hybneri(Heteroptera:Pentatomidae)on Soybeans

Abstract

A parasitoid guild attacking eggs of a stink bug, Piezodorus hybneri, and seasonal trends of its parasitism were studied in 1989-1990 in soybean fields. Telenomus triptus and Ooencyrtus nezarae were identified as the parasitoids of P. hybneri eggs. The predominant parasitoid was T. triptus and high parasitism rates were recorded in both years, covering most of the ovipositional period of the P. hybneri that invaded the fields and laid eggs from early July to early August. The parasitism by T. triptus suppressed the hatchability of P. hybneri eggs to very low levels. Activity of this parasitoid accounted for almost all hatching failures. Female adults of T. triptus began to be caught by a sticky suction trap from mid-July in the field. Fewer males were trapped than females with time delay.