Chelonus formosanus Sonan (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) an egg-larval parasitoid of the invasive pest Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) amenable to laboratory mass production in India

Abstract

Field surveys conducted during 2018 in the maize fields infested with Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in Karnataka and during 2019 in Andhra Pradesh yielded an egg-larval parasitoid Chelonus formosanus Sonan (Hymenoptera: Braconidae). This is the first report of C. formosanus parasitizing S. frugiperda in India (in natural field conditions) and which is amenable to mass production (in laboratory conditions). The present study provides morphological identification details along with mass production procedure and biology of C. formosanus.