The superfamily Ichneumonoidea contains one extinct and three extant families, including the two largest families within Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae and Braconidae. The group is thought to contain as many as 100,000 species, many of which have not yet been described. Like other parasitoid wasps, they were long placed in the "Parasitica", variously considered as an infraorder or an unranked clade, now known to be paraphyletic.
Hymenoepimecis argyraphaga is a Costa Rican parasitoid wasp whose host is the spider Plesiometa argyra. The wasp is unusual in modifying the spider's web building behavior to make a web made of very strong lines designed to support the wasp's cocoon without breaking in the rain.
A polydnavirus (PDV) or more recently, polydnaviriform is a member of the family Polydnaviridae of insect viruses. There are two genera in the family: Bracovirus and Ichnovirus. Polydnaviruses form a symbiotic relationship with parasitoid wasps;. The larvae of wasps in both of those groups are themselves parasitic on Lepidoptera, and the polydnaviruses are important in circumventing the immune response of their parasitized hosts. Little or no sequence homology exists between BV and IV, suggesting that the two genera have been evolving independently for a long time.
The codling moth is a member of the Lepidopteran family Tortricidae. They are major pests to agricultural crops, mainly fruits such as apples and pears. Because the larvae are not able to feed on leaves, they are highly dependent on fruits as a food source and thus have a significant impact on crops. The caterpillars bore into fruit and stop it from growing, which leads to premature ripening. Various means of control, including chemical, biological, and preventive, have been implemented. This moth has a widespread distribution, being found on six continents. Adaptive behavior such as diapause and multiple generations per breeding season have allowed this moth to persist even during years of bad climatic conditions.
Manduca quinquemaculata, the five-spotted hawkmoth, is a brown and gray hawk moth of the family Sphingidae. The caterpillar, often referred to as the tomato hornworm, can be a major pest in gardens; they get their name from a dark projection on their posterior end and their use of tomatoes as host plants. Tomato hornworms are closely related to the tobacco hornworm Manduca sexta. This confusion arises because caterpillars of both species have similar morphologies and feed on the foliage of various plants from the family Solanaceae, so either species can be found on tobacco or tomato leaves. Because of this, the plant on which the caterpillar is found does not indicate its species.
The emerald cockroach wasp or jewel wasp is a solitary wasp of the family Ampulicidae. It is known for its unusual reproductive behavior, which involves stinging a cockroach and using it as a host for its larvae. It thus belongs to the entomophagous parasites.
Parasitoid wasps are a large group of hymenopteran superfamilies, with all but the wood wasps (Orussoidea) being in the wasp-waisted Apocrita. As parasitoids, they lay their eggs on or in the bodies of other arthropods, sooner or later causing the death of these hosts. Different species specialise in hosts from different insect orders, most often Lepidoptera, though some select beetles, flies, or bugs; the spider wasps (Pompilidae) exclusively attack spiders.
Cotesia congregata is a parasitoid wasp of the genus Cotesia. The genus is particularly noted for its use of polydnaviruses. Parasitoids are distinct from true parasites in that a parasitoid will ultimately kill its host or otherwise sterilize it.
Glyptapanteles is a genus of endoparasitoid wasps found in Central and North America and New Zealand. The larvae of the members of Glyptapanteles sp. are distinguished by their ability to manipulate their hosts into serving as bodyguards.
Spathius agrili is a parasitic non-stinging wasp of family Braconidae which is native to North Asia. It is a parasitoid of the emerald ash borer, an invasive species which has destroyed tens of millions of ash trees in its introduced range in North America. As part of the campaign against the emerald ash borer (EAB), American scientists in conjunction with the Chinese Academy of Forestry began searching in 2003 for its natural enemies in the wild, leading to the discovery of several parasitoid wasp species, including Spathius agrili. S. agrili was discovered in Tianjin, China where it is a prevalent parasitoid of EAB larvae in stands of an introduced ash species, and an endemic ash species. S. agrili has been recorded to attack and kill up to 90 percent of EAB larvae.
Cotesia glomerata, the white butterfly parasite, is a small parasitoid wasp species belonging to family Braconidae. It was first described by Carl Linnaeus in his 1758 publication 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
Behavior-altering parasites are parasites with two or more hosts, capable of causing changes in the behavior of one of their hosts to enhance their transmission, sometimes directly affecting the hosts' decision-making and behavior control mechanisms. They do this by making the intermediate host, where they may reproduce asexually, more likely to be eaten by a predator at a higher trophic level which becomes the definitive host where the parasite reproduces sexually; the mechanism is therefore sometimes called parasite increased trophic facilitation or parasite increased trophic transmission. Examples can be found in bacteria, protozoa, viruses, and animals. Parasites may also alter the host behaviour to increase protection of the parasites or their offspring; the term bodyguard manipulation is used for such mechanisms.
Dinocampus coccinellae paralysis virus (DcPV) is a single-stranded, positive-sense RNA virus of insects, in the picorna-like virus family Iflaviridae, which was first characterised in 2015. It asymptomatically infects the parasitic braconid wasp, Dinocampus coccinellae, and has been proposed to be associated with the paralytic effect the wasp has on its host, the spotted lady beetle, Coleomegilla maculata, which it turns into a so-called "zombie bodyguard" for its pupa.
Aphidius nigripes is a species of parasitoid wasp in the subfamily Aphidiinae of the family Braconidae. It is the most common parasitoid of the potato aphid Macrosiphum euphorbiae in eastern North America. Many other species of aphids may also serve as hosts.
Lathrolestes ensator is a species of wasp in the family Ichneumonidae. it is a parasitoid of the apple sawfly Hoplocampa testudinea. Both insects are native to Europe, but the sawfly has been accidentally introduced into North America where it has become established. The larvae of the sawfly tunnel into developing apple fruitlets which later fall to the ground, where the larvae continue their development. The wasp parasitises the larvae and has been released in North America as part of a biological control programme for the sawfly.
Dahlbominus fuscipennis, the sawfly parasitic wasp, is a species of chalcid wasp from the family Eulophidae which parasitizes the European pine sawfly Neodiprion sertifer, among other hosts. It is the only species in the genus Dahlbominus.
Diachasmimorpha longicaudata is a solitary species of parasitoid wasp and an endoparasitoid of tephritid fruit fly larvae. D. longicaudata is native to many countries in Southeast Asia and subtropical regions and has also been introduced to many other countries as a biological control agent. It is now considered the most extensively used parasitoid for biocontrol of fruit flies in both the southern portion of the United States and Latin America. D. longicaudata is especially useful for agricultural purposes in the control of fruit flies as it is easily mass-reared and has the ability to infect a variety of hosts within the genus Bactrocera. A negative factor in its use as a biocontrol agent is that it is known to oviposit in grapefruit in the state of Florida. This has resulted in quarantines on grapefruit shipped internationally as well as domestically. Research is ongoing to determine whether D. longicaudata is actually a single species, or if it contains multiple species. It is likely multiple biological species separated by both reproductive isolation and morphological characteristics such as wing geometry.
Zatypota percontatoria is a species of parasitoid wasps that is part of the order Hymenoptera and the family Ichneumonidae responsible for parasitizing arachnids, specifically those of the family Theridiidae.
Nealiolus curculionis is a species of parasitic wasp in the family Braconidae. It is a parasitoid of the sunflower stem weevil Cylindrocopturus adspersus, and a number of other species of stem-boring weevils.
Diadegma semiclausum is a species of parasitic wasp in the family Ichneumonidae. Its larvae are parasites of the larvae of the diamondback moth and certain other moths.
