Evaluation of Aprostocetus hagenowii (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) for the Control of American Cockroaches (Dictyoptera: Blattidae) in Sewers and Crevices Around Buildings

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential of Aprostocetus hagenowii (Ratzeburg) (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) to control American cockroaches, Periplaneta americana (L.) (Dictyoptera: Blattidae), in sewer manholes and in crevices around buildings. Parasitoids were released weekly for 12 wk from laboratory parasitized heat-killed oothecae, and parasitism monitored using sentinel oothecae of American cockroaches. In addition, preference of A. hagenowii for 1- to 4-wk-old oothecae was evaluated in the laboratory. A. hagenowii females showed no preference for any ootheca age. Twenty of the 30 tested females parasitized one ootheca, whereas the other 10 parasitized two oothecae. The total progeny (males, females, and total) that emerged from a single ootheca parasitized by a female was not significantly different to the total progeny that emerged from two oothecae parasitized by a female. The number of males, females, and total progeny that emerged from the second parasitized ootheca was significantly less than the number that emerged from the first parasitized ootheca. The weekly mean sentinel oothecal parasitism rate in wall crevices was 18.1 +/- 3.2% and in sewer manholes was 13.3 +/- 2.0%. The mean number of released A. hagenowii females per number of parasitized sentinel oothecae recorded in crevices was 189 +/- 18, whereas it was 428 +/- 50 in sewers. A. hagenowii females were more effective at parasitizing sentinel oothecae placed at high and middle levels in manholes than at a low level when releases were made at the midpoint of the manhole shaft.

Water balance profiles, humidity preference and survival of two sympatric cockroach egg parasitoids Evania appendigaster and Aprostocetus hagenowii (Hymenoptera: Evaniidae; Eulophidae)

“…E. appendigaster has been found to be a predominant species in sewer systems (Tee and Lee, unpublished data) and has been observed to prefer humid areas such as basements, crawl spaces, and culverts . A. hagenowii were not detected in sentinel oothecae placed inside sewer systems heavily infested with P. americana (Reierson et al, 2005;Tee et al, 2011b). In this study, similarity in water loss rates, difference in RH preference, and different effects of a sugar food source on longevity were documented for these two oothecal parasitoids.…”

“…The effect of release of A. hagenowii around tree holes (Suiter et al, 1998), crevices around buildings (Tee et al, 2011b), sewer systems (Reierson et al, 2005), plumbing chases (Pawson and Gold, 1993), basements (Roth and Willis, 1954), and a simulated kitchen (Hagenbuch et al, 1989) has been studied. Among these studies, high parasitism rates (50-100%) of oothecae were documented for releases around tree holes, basements, and a simulated kitchen, whereas other release sites had low to moderate parasitism rates (0-44%).…”

Toxicity of Imidacloprid Gel Bait against Laboratory Strain of Periplaneta americana (L.) (Dictyoptera : Blattidae) and Blattella germanica (L.) (Dictyoptera : Blattellidae)

“…Moreover, imidacloprid also possesses low toxicity to non-target organisms like mammals, birds and fishes (agrawal & Tilak 2006). nevertheless, placement of toxic baits including the imidacloprid gel bait is only effective against the adult and nymphal stages but not in destroying eggs inside oothecae (Tee et al 2011a).…”

“…Kata kunci: Imidakloprid; Periplaneta americana; Blattella germanica; peracunan pertama; peracunan kedua InTrODUCTIOn Cockroaches remain as public health and medically important pests (ree et al 2006) with cosmopolitan distribution (Kinfu & erko 2008;Yoon et al 2009). The German cockroach, Blattella germanica (L.) (Dictyoptera: Blattellidae) is the main pest in households, hospitals and residential areas (Limoee et al 2012), whereas the american cockroach, Periplaneta americana (L.) (Dictyoptera: Blattidae) is a predominant pest cockroach in housing premises especially in Southeast asia (Tee et al 2011a). Both species serve as potential mechanical vectors of pathogenic agents (nasirian et al 2011;Tee et al 2011b;Xiao et al 2012).…”

First Report ofAprostocetus asthenogmus(Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) in South America and Parasitizing Eggs of Triatominae Vectors of Chagas Disease

“…Parasitoid wasps are distributed throughout the world in a variety of environments [16] and usually parasitize the eggs of a wide range of insects, many Triatominae species among them [12]. They are considered to have biological, ecological, and economic importance, and some species are employed as pest biological control agents [17, 18]. …”