Fand, B.B., Amala, U., Yadav, D.S., Rathi, G., Mhaske, S.H., Upadhyay, A., Ahammed Shabeer, T.P., & Kumbhar, D.R. 2020 Bacterial volatiles from mealybug honeydew exhibit kairomonal activity toward solitary endoparasitoid Anagyrus dactylopii. Journal of Pest Science 93:195–206
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Notes: Anagyrus dactylopii (Howard) (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) is a solitary koinobiont endoparasitoid of grapevine mealybugs and has been reported to parasitize 70% of mealybug populations naturally. Mated females positively responded to volatiles from two bacteria associated with the honeydew of Maconellicoccus hirsutus, and the three bacteria from honeydew of Nipaecoccus viridis. This indicates an ability of A. dactylopii to exploit cues associated with the mealybug honeydew for host location. The possible exploitation of bacterial VOCs in enhancing populations of A. dactylopii and promoting conservation biological control of mealybugs in grape vineyards is discussed.
