بررسی رفتار کاوشگری زنبور Fopius carpomyiae (Hymenoptera: Braconidae)، پارازیتوئید مگس میوه کنار Carpomyia vesuviana (Diptera: Tephritidae)

Fopius carpomyiae Silvestri (Hym.: Braconidae) is an egg-pupal parasitoid of ber fruit fly, Carpomyia vesuviana Costa (Tephritidae) in Bushehr and Khozestan provinces. In this research the foraging behaviors, time allocation to behaviors associated with foraging, and patch residence time of F. carpomyiae was studied during foraging on C. vesuviana. For this purpose, firstly the synchronous cohorts of F. carpomyiae females were produced, then the mated females were released separately into petri dish containing a ber fruit on which clutch of ber fruit fly eggs. Each female (n = 20) was observed continuously under a stereomicroscope while she remained in the patch and the time of onset and duration of all distinguishable behavioral events were recorded using an MP3 voice recorder. The females were dissected following termination of each replicate, and the number of eggs in the ovaries was obtained following dissection. The results showed that the parasitoid located the host eggs by antennation and detecting behaviors and then parasitized the host eggs after probing. The objective of next experiment was to determine a threshold ovipositor insertion time that would distinguish successful attacks in which an egg was laid in a host from mere investigative probing. The mean duration of ovipositor insertions resulting in parasitism was 44 sec. and the maximum insertion time was obtained 217 sec. The average time of oviposition lasted 126.25 sec. The continuous observations of parasitoid behaviors in host patches showed the eight different foraging behaviors. The females devoted 146.40 ± 8.80 sec. (47%) to oviposition, and 98.75 ± 2.27 sec. (31%) to probing, during patch resistance time (313.20 sec). The foragers allocated the least times to the resting (8.75 ± 0.52 sec.), walking (7.90 ± 0.45 sec.) and flying (1.90 ± 0.14 sec.) behaviors. In average, the egg load of F. carpomyiae females with 7-8 days old was 29.40, and percent parasitism was determined 39.2. Totally, based on results, F. carpomyiae females showed the proper exploitation of host, because of its effective foraging behaviors and high percent parasitism.