The evergreen bagworm, Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformis(Haworth),is a psychid moth that is a common defoliator of a wide variety of trees and shrubs, especially evergreens, and reduces aesthetic quality and even survival of evergreens in urban ornamental landscapes. Several species of parasitoid wasps commonly attack T. ephemeraeformis. Although immature forms of these parasitoids develop inside their adult bagworm hosts, adults feed on nectar of flowering plants.
We examined the influence of flowering forbs planted near arborvitae
shrubs on rates of parasitism of bagworms. Bagworms were reared in the
laboratory and placed on arborvitae shrubs that were either surrounded by
flowering plants or bare mulch. Bagworms were later recovered and examined for
signs of parasitism and vertebrate predation to determine whether mortality rates
were affected by planting treatments. In an exclusion study, we evaluated the role of
predation by birds and the white-footed mouse on regulation of bagworm populations.
We also examined the spatial effects on the relationship between parasitism of bagworms and availability of floral resources.
Species 1: Lepidoptera Psychidae Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformis (evergreen bagworm)
Species 2: Hymenoptera Ichneumonidae Itoplectis conquisitor
Species 3: Hymenoptera Ichneumonidae Pimpla disparis
Keywords: parasitoid, conservation biological control
The ESA 2001 Annual Meeting - 2001: An Entomological Odyssey of ESA