The effect of Lygus lineolaris host plant species on parasitism of eggs by Anaphes iole was evaluated. Host plants included several non-crop species utilized by L. lineolaris in the southcentral United States, as well as cotton and alfalfa. Parasitism was assessed by rearing host eggs and by a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique using a molecular marker for detection of immature A. iole developing within host eggs. The PCR technique provided more rapid and accurate detection of parasitism than did rearing. Our results indicate that parasitism rates of L. lineolaris eggs varied between and within plant species. Within plant L. lineolaris egg distribution was not uniform and eggs laid in certain plant structures escaped parasitism. Implications for habitat management strategies aimed at early-season suppression of L. lineolaris populations will be discussed.
Species 1: Heteroptera Miridae Lygus lineolaris (tarnished plant bug)
Species 2: Hymenoptera Mymaridae Anaphes iole
Keywords: egg parasitoid, conservation biological control
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