New distributional records on egg parasitoids (Hymenoptera, Chalcidoidea, Trichogrammatidae) from Chhattisgarh, India

Abstract

Egg parasitoids from the Trichogrammatidae family, including Aphelinoidea, Paracentrobia, and Ufens, parasitize the hemipteran eggs on crops, orchards, and forest tree species. In agro-forestry areas, trichogrammatids are widely recognised as effective biocontrol agents for lepidopterous insect pests of different crops. They play a significant role and are widely accepted in the biological management of insect pests. Many trichogrammatid egg parasitoids were explored in sweep net collecting samples during surveys carried out in the agro-forestry regions of Chhattisgarh, India, during February–March and October–November 2017. Ten species of trichogrammatids, namely Aphelinoidea gwaliorensis Yousuf & Shafee; Lathromeroidea ajmerensis Yousuf & Shafee, Oligosita debaiensis Yousuf & Shafee, Oligosita gilvus Yousuf & Shafee, Pseudoligosita nephotetticum (Mani), Oligosita novisanguinea Girault, Oligosita sanguinea Yousuf & Shafee, Paracentrobia magniclavata Yousuf & Shafee, Ufens gurgaonensis Yousuf & Shafee and Ufens jaipurensis Yousuf & Shafee were recorded as indigenous species, with new distribution in Chhattisgarh.