Species Insects & ArthropodsEgg Parasitoid Wasp

Egg Parasitoid Wasp

Trichogramma pretiosum

CommonInsect & Arthropod
Illustration of Egg Parasitoid Wasp (Trichogramma pretiosum)

The Egg Parasitoid Wasp is a minute wasp smaller than a grain of sand that lays its own eggs inside the eggs of over 200 pest moth and butterfly species, killing the host egg before the caterpillar can hatch. It is mass-produced in biological control programs and used widely in agriculture to suppress bollworms, armyworms, and other lepidopteran pests. Multiple wasp eggs can develop inside a single host egg.

Habitat
Agricultural fields, gardens, and natural areas throughout North America
Diet
Larvae: inside eggs of moths and butterflies. Adults: honeydew
How common
Common

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