Three species of pineapple-infesting mealybugs (MB) along with an associated Closterovirus cause Pineapple Mealybug Wilt (PMW) disease. Pink pineapple mealybug, PPM, Dysmicoccus brevipes (Ckll.) (Homoptera: Pseudococcidae), is the most common MB in Hawaii’s pineapple and is attacked by several natural enemies. Attending ants reduce the effectiveness of natural enemies including that of the most common internal parasitoid wasp Anagyrus ananatis Gahan (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae). In efforts to improve biological control by A. ananatis in the presence of ants, possibility of augmenting the natural A. ananatis populations by mass-reared individuals is being investigated. PPM reared on Kobocha squash were graded through standard sieves and exposed to parasitoids. Individual mummies were transferred to gel capsules and size of emerging wasps were measured. Host MB size significantly affected the parasitoid body size; mature adult MB producing larger sized wasps. Parasitization of PPM host separated from squash produced A. ananatis individuals that were 10% smaller than individuals reared from PPM on the squash. Because the number of hosts attacked by individual wasps was significantly correlated with the wasp’s body size, and wasp body size was significantly correlated with host MB size, it was important to produce a uniform mature adult PPM colony for parasitization. Kobocha squash (~700g) infested with 0.5g of mature gravid female PPM produced >2500 mature adult PPM suitable for parasitoid production, which was significantly higher than those from squash infested with PPM nymphs and young adults. With an 80% parasitization rate it was possible to produce >2000 parasitic wasps from one squash.
Species 1: Hymenoptera Encyrtidae Anagyrus ananatis
Species 2: Homoptera Pseudococcidae Dysmicoccus brevipes (pink pineapple mealybug)
Keywords: Anagyrus ananatis, Mass production
The ESA 2001 Annual Meeting - 2001: An Entomological Odyssey of ESA