Habrobracon concolorans (Marshall, 1900)

Scaramozzino, Pier Luigi, Loni, Augusto & Lucchi, Andrea, 2017, A review of insect parasitoids associated with Lobesiabotrana (Denis & Schiffermueller, 1775) in Italy. 1. DipteraTachinidae and HymenopteraBraconidae (Lepidoptera, Tortricidae), ZooKeys 647, pp. 67-100 : 78

Habrobracon concolorans (Marshall, 1900)

Habrobracon concolorans Loni et al. 2016

Bracon sl.: Scaramozzino et al. (in press)

Italian distribution of reared parasitoids.

Tuscany: Loni et al. 2016, Scaramozzino et al. (in press)

Distribution.

Habrobracon concolorans is a Trans-Eurasian species ( Samartsev and Belokobylskij 2013), widely distributed in the Palaearctic region.

Host range.

Loni et al. (2016) found this species associated with EGVM for the first time. In the Nature Reserve of San Rossore, on Daphne gnidium , Habrobracon concolorans feeds on larvae of the three EGVM generations. It develops as ectoparasitoid on mature larvae, killing them before they make the cocoon, and showing both solitary and gregarious habits, with up to four individuals feeding on the same host larva. To date it is only known from 13 host species, mostly Lepidoptera ( Gelechiidae , Noctuidae , Nymphalidae , Pyralidae , Tortricidae ) and one Coleoptera Anobiidae ( Loni et al. 2016). Moreover, Habrobracon concolorans is a major parasitoid of the highly invasive South American tomato leafminer, Tuta absoluta (Meyrick, 1917) ( Lepidoptera , Gelechiidae ) ( Biondi et al. 2013).

Ecological role.

Habrobracon concolorans has been found associated to three other species of Braconinae ( Habrobracon hebetor , Habrobracon pillerianae and Bracon admotus ) that emerged from more than 1,200 EGVM samples collected in 2014 ( Loni et al. 2016) with a parasitization rate of 2.4%.