TITLE:
First occurrence of Neralsia splendens (Borgmeier) (Hymenoptera: Figitidae) as parasitoids of Cyrtoneurina pararescita (Couri) (Diptera: Muscidae) in a rural area in Brazil
AUTHORS:
Carlos Henrique Marchiori
KEYWORDS:
Insecta; Diptera; Biocontrol; Goiás; Brazil
JOURNAL NAME:
Agricultural Sciences,
Vol.5 No.1,
January
22,
2014
ABSTRACT: Figitidae behave as
primary parasitoids of dipterous larvae that develop in the feces of cattle
and agricultural pests such as fruit flies (Tephritidae) on fruit, Zaprionus indianus Gupta (Diptera: Drosophilidae)
in fig cultivations, and Dettmeria
euxestae Borgmeier, 1935 (Hymenoptera: Figitidae) in Euxesta eluta Loew, 1996 (Diptera: Otitidae) in corn. Neralsia splendens (Borgmeier 1935)
(Hymenoptera: Figitidae), is a larval parasitoid of Diptera. The muscid genus Cyrtoneurina Giglio-Tos is one of the most
abundant Phaoniine groups in the Neotropics. It may be of some hygienic
importance because of the semidomestic habits of the adults of several
species and the environment in which the coprophagous larvae develop. In the
Neotropical region, few studies have been conducted on this group. This paper
reports the first occurrence of N.
splendens parasitizing C. pararescita in a rural area inBrazil. The
study was conducted at the farm of the Veterinary andZootechnicsSchoolof the Federal University of
Goiás, inGoiania,Brazil, next to corn and sorghum plantations. The dipterous pupae were obtained by means of the flotation method. They were
individually placed in gelatin capsules until the emergence of the dipterous
insects and/or their parasitoids. Two specimens were collected from 26 pupae of C. pararescita. The percentage of
parasitism was 0.35%. The present study
is the first in the world to report the occurrence of N. splendens parasitizing C. pararescita.