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About parasitoids - Hymenoptera
Identifying natural enemies > parasitoids
The most abundant group of parasitoids is the wasps (order Hymenoptera). Parasitic wasps exhib-it complete metamorphosis with a free-living adult stage that may be predaceous or feed on pollen and nectar. Parasitoids require a host insect to develop into adults. In the majority of parasitoids, females lay an egg(s) in, on or near the host. The larva hatches and feeds within a host, ultimately killing it, and emerging as an adult parasitoid.

Parasitic wasps share two diagnostic features that greatly contribute to their success. Female wasps have an ovipositor that allows them to deposit eggs on or in a host body. Parasitoids also have a narrow “waist,” called the petiole, which allows their abdomens to be highly flexible. This facilitates attack of active or protected hosts. The size of parasitoids is quite variable, and the visibility of these features depends partly on size.

Ichneumonid wasp adult
Ichneumonid wasp adult
 
More about parasitoids
The MSU IPM Program maintains this site as an access point to pest management information at MSU. The IPM Program is administered within the Department of Entomology, fueled by research from the Michigan Agricultural Experiment Station, delivered to citizens through MSU Extension, and proud to be a part of Project GREEEN.
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12/21/06