Egg dispersion and the sex ratio of progeny were studied in relation to the host density of the parasitoid, Bracon hebetor Say, infesting larvae of Plodia interpunctella (H . ubner). Females appeared to allocate eggs in relation to host density to avoid laying more eggs than could complete development on a host. The dispersion pattern of the parasitoid ovipositions among hosts was influenced by...

Food characteristics strongly regulate digestive enzymatic activity of insects through direct influences on their midgut mechanisms. Insect performance is better on diets that contain nutrients in proportions that fit its digestive enzymes. Little is known about the influences of rearing history on parasitism success of Habrobracon hebetor Say. This research focused on the effect of nutrient re...

the flour moth, ephestia kuehniella zeller and indianmeal moth, plodia interpunctella (hubner) are reported as important pests of stored products in many countries throughout the world. in recent years harobracon hebetor (say) wasp has been employed as a biological control agent of the moths' larvae in peanut warehouses as well as in packaged cereal products. in this study the functional r...

On the market since 1996, genetically modified plants expressing an insecticidal toxin (Cry toxin stemmed from Bacillus thuringiensis) target several lepidopteran and coleopteran pests. In this study, we assessed the impact of two varieties of Bt maize producing different toxins (Cry1Ab or Cry1Fa, respectively) on the biology of a storage pest: Plodia interpunctella (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Pyral...

The cellular and humoral immune reactions in haemolymph of the wax moth Galleria mellonella larvae naturally injected by venom of ectoparasitic wasp Habrobracon hebetor were analyzed. A strong decline of phenoloxidase (PO) activity in the haemolymph and the number of haemocytes with PO activity of envenomated wax moth was observed. In addition, it has been shown that the rate of capsule melaniz...

The water strider Limnogonus fossarum fossarum (F.) (Hemiptera: Gerridae) shows a macropterous, micropterous, and apterous polymorphism. Although a long photoperiod condition induces winged morphs, preliminary studies have revealed that crossing between winged morphs increased the proportion of macropterous individuals, suggesting that the genetic factors also affect wing-morph determination in...