Cotesia plutellae parasitizing Plutella xylostella: Host-age dependent parasitism and its effect on host development and food consumption

The braconid Cotesia plutellae(Kurdjumov) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) is amajor solitary, larval endoparasitoid of thediamondback moth, Plutella xylostella(L.) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae). Parasitism oflarvae of different host instars and fourdevelopmental ages of the 4th instar ofthe pest was examined. The effects of hostinstar at initial parasitization on thedevelopment, survival, size and fecundity ofthe parasitoid were determined in thelaboratory at 25 °C. The effects ofparasitism on host development and foodconsumption were investigated at 28 °C.Cotesia plutellae could parasitize larvaeof all four instars of P. xylostella, butpreferred 2nd and 3rd instars. In achoice test, the relative parasitism indicesfor 2nd, 3rd and 4th instarswere 0.37, 0.39 and 0.24, respectively.Parasitism decreased sharply with increasinghost age in the 4th instar and approachedzero in host larvae that had gone beyond 37%of 4th stadium. The development time andthe final adult size of the parasitoid variedwith the host instar at initial parasitization.Parasitoids with initial parasitism in the4th instar hosts had the shortestdevelopment time, followed by those in the3rd instar, and then by those in the2nd instar. Parasitoids startingparasitism in 2nd instar hosts weresmaller in body size than those starting in the3rd or 4th instar. However, resultantfemales starting parasitism in 3rd instarhosts had the highest fecundity. Parasitizedlarvae exhibited longer development time andincreased food consumption compared withunparasitized ones. This study presents thefirst record that a solitary parasitoidregulates host behavior leading to an increasein food consumption by the host.