Parasitic Wasps
 
                 
 
 
 
 
 

 

Family BRACONIDAE - Braconid Wasps

Members in this family have long and thin body, with narrow waist like wasps. Usually they are small in size.

Body length  20mm                                                                              

Their larvae are parasitic. Most caterpillar are targeted host. The female wasp usually locates the food plants of the host then searches with her antennae for a suitable host. The female usually has the long ovipositor which is used to insert eggs into the host body. The host will usually survive when the larvae is still living. Until the larvae fully grown, the larvae either pupates inside the dead host or form a cocoon outside.

Many aphid parasites are Braconid and their life cycles are similar. 


 
Braconid Wasp
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? sp., subfamily Braconinae, body length 15mm
This wasp has a very long ovipositor which make believe it is a Ichneumon Wasp. The wasp has a black head, long black antenna with white sections and reddish-brown body. We took this picture in Yugarapul Park in mid summer. 
 
 
Braconid Wasp
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? sp., subfamily Braconinae, body length 20mm
 
 
Braconid Wasp
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Chaoilta sp., subfamily Braconinae, body length 20mm
Reference:
1. A field guide to insects in Australia - By Paul Zborowski and Ross Storey, Reed New Holland, 1996, p185.
 
 
Aphid Parasitic Wasp
 
Aphidius sp., subfamily Aphidiinae, body length 2mm
Aphid Parasitic Wasps, or Braconid Wasps, are the very small wasps. The Parasitic Wasps can be found amongst the aphids colony, although they may not been seen easily. The first picture shows a wasp laying egg into a aphid body. The second picture shows a aphids colony, some of the aphids population are dull brown in colour, which are parasitised by the wasp. More information and pictures in this page.
 
 
Longtailed Fruit fly Parasitoid
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Diachasmimorpha longicaudata, subfamily Opiinae, body length 4mm 
We have a plum plant in our backyard. Some fruits were infected by a kind of small fruit flies. There were the wound on the fruits, if we open it we will see the small fruit fly larvae. Sometimes we saw the small wasp, as the about pictures, examining the infected fruits. After checking the wound on the fruit, the wasp will insert her ovipositor into the wound. We believed she laid eggs which the larvae will hatch and  parasite on the fruit fly larvae. Please also check this web page.
  
 
Moth Caterpillar Parasite
 
Apanteles sp, subfamily Microgasterinae, body length 10mm
Reference:
1. Apanteles subandinus - Australian Insect Common Names, CSIRO 2005.
 

Reference:
1. Insects of Australia, CSIRO, Division of Entomology, Melbourne University Press, 2nd Edition 1991, pp 945.

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Last updated: October 15, 2006.