A review of known parasitoids of hemlock looper (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) in Canada and first records of its egg and larval parasitoids in Labrador forests.
Citation
Sabbahi, R., Royer, L., O’Hara, J.E. and Bennett, A.M.R. 2018. A review of known parasitoids of hemlock looper (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) in Canada and first records of its egg and larval parasitoids in Labrador forests. The Canadian Entomologist 150: 499-510.
Plain language summary
Flies and wasps that parasitize the Canadian forest pest moth hemlock looper were collected in Labrador in 2009 by rearing caterpillars in the lab. Six parasitoid species were reared (none new to Canada). Furthermore, an up to date list of all the parasitoid flies and wasps reared from hemlock looper in Canada was compiled including references supporting these records. Sixty-eight species of flies and wasps have been reared from hemlock looper in Canada (six from eggs and 62 from the larva and pupa). This summary list will help biological control scientists control this damaging native pest of Canadian forests.
Abstract
A rearing study of egg and larval parasitoids of hemlock looper (Lambdina fiscellaria
(Guenée); Lepidoptera: Geometridae) was undertaken during an outbreak of this pest in Labrador, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Six parasitoid species were found: Telenomus coloradensis Crawford and T. droozi Muesebeck (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae), Winthemia occidentis Reinhard and Blondelia eufitchiae (Townsend) (Diptera: Tachinidae), as well as one species of Phobocampe Förster and Mesochorus vittator (Zetterstedt) (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae). None of them was a new Canadian record. To facilitate understanding of the regional parasitoid assemblage in Labrador, we compiled all published records in Canada and collated all specimen records from the Canadian National Collection of Insects, Arachnids, and Nematodes (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada). This comprehensive list will aid researchers interested in potential biological control candidates for hemlock looper.