LIFE HISTORY DATA

Diagnostic features of adult wasp

Body length 4.1-4.8 mm; antenna with 34-37 flagellomeres; head color black dorsally, light orangish brown ventrally; malar space 1.5 x basal width of mandible, ocelli small, ocell-ocular distance 1.7 x width of lateral ocellus; occipital carina broken at vertex; mesopleuron granulate; apex of hind tibia with setae normal, not flattened; propodeum mostly rugulose-granulate, with median propodeal carina complete; tarsal claw simple; metasomal terga 1-4 entirely dark brown to black, without off-white spots markings; metasomal tergum 3 sculpture varying from entirely granulate to entirely costulate, median carina incomplete; ovipositor length about equal to length of hind basitarsus, varying from 0.9-1.1 x hind basitarsus length.

Biology and rearing records

Aleiodes atripileatus has been reared from Noctuidae (Hypena species) caterpillars feeding on Urticaceae, including Phenax rugosus, Boemeria bullata, Miriocarpa species, and three other unidentified urticaceous plants. Other noctuids, and possibly some geometrids, on the same host plants might be utilized. It is a solitary koinobiont endoparasitoid.

Distribution

All records of this species are from the Yanayacu Biological Research Station, Napo Province, Ecuador.

Similar species

Aleiodes atripileatus is similar to Aleiodes albiterminus (Townsend), which also has small ocelli, malar space at least 1.25 x basal width of the mandible, and gena (below the eye) with light orange-brown color. However, A. atripileatus can be distinguished by its having a median carina on the first and second metasomal terga, its shorter ovipositor, and the black metasomal tergum 3. Characteristics separating A. atripileatus from other species are given by Townsend and Shaw (2009).

Comments

The species name atripileatus means "black capped" in Latin, referring to the large black spot on the top of the head in this species.

Reference

Townsend, A. and S.R. Shaw. 2009. Nine new species of Aleiodes reared from caterpillars in the northeastern Andes of Ecuador (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Rogadinae). Journal of Insect Science 9, Article 33, pages 1-21. Available online: insectscience.org/9.33