The Neotropical cornstalk borer, Diatraea lineolata (Walker), is a pest of economic importance in maize, Zea mays L., in Mexico. The objective was to evaluate natural parasitism by Apanteles diatraeae Muesebeck on D. lineolata larvae during four ‘Mejen’ maize-growing seasons at Tabasco, Mexico. Parasitism by the braconid A. diatraeae on D. lineolata larvae was relatively low, from 0.29 to 2.8%. Of a total of 15 parasitized larvae, 46.6% were 3rd instar, 26.7% 4th instar, and 26.7% 5th-instar larvae. A. diatraeae is a gregarious endoparasitoid, with an average of 57.1 wasps emerging per parasitized larva and a sex ratio of 1:0.44 (female:male). The braconid should be studied in greater detail to know more about its interrelationship with its host during phenological stages of the crop, before physiological maturity of maize plants.
How to translate text using browser tools
25 March 2021
Field Parasitism of the Neotropical Cornstalk Borer, Diatraea lineolata (Walker), by Apanteles diatraeae Muesebeck
José Isaac Figueroa,
Azalia Correa-Méndez,
Rodolfo Osorio-Osorio,
Luis Ulises Hernández-Hernández,
Efraín De La Cruz-Lázaro,
Cesar Márquez-Quiroz
ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE
Southwestern Entomologist
Vol. 46 • No. 1
March 2021
Vol. 46 • No. 1
March 2021