How oviposition experience effects attraction of the parasitoid Cotesia marginiventris to Spodoptera exigua and Trichoplusia ni in wind tunnel assays

C. marginiventris is a generalist parasitoid wasp of Noctuid caterpillars and an effective biological control agent. It has been reported that one of its hosts, T. ni, is more heavily parasitized while in the presence of another host, S. exigua. The attraction of C. marginiventris to S. exigua via herbivore induced plant volatiles has been widely documented, but attraction to T. ni induced volatiles is lesser known. Flight assays in a wind tunnel were used to determine wasp attractiveness to cotton damaged by either species. We then tested the effects of oviposition experience on wasp flight behavior to determine if these volatile cues were positively or negatively associated with either host species. Further work is being done to explore the successful emergence of parasitoid progeny from T. ni and S. exigua.