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Affect of food provisioning on survival and reproductive success of the olive fruit fly parasitoid, Psyttalia lounsburyi, in the field

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Abstract

Conservation biological control offers approaches that can be integrated into classical biological control programs to enhance pest suppression. Food subsidies, such as nectar and honeydew, can increase a parasitoid’s fecundity either by extension of the reproductive lifespan, increasing the rate of egg maturation, or both. The olive fruit fly, Bactrocera oleae, is a major pest of olives in California, where a classical biological control program is currently underway using an exotic parasitoid, Psyttalia lounsburyi. We conducted a field study where female–male pairs of P. lounsburyi wasps were caged with B. oleae-infested olives, and provisioned either with or without food. Our study showed that adult feeding is crucial to P. lounsburyi survival and fecundity under field-cage conditions. Food provision increased P. lounsburyi survival and several components of the wasp’s reproductive success; nevertheless, parasitism rates and offspring production were relatively low. This was probably due, at least in part, to location of host larvae in enemy-free space ‘beyond the reach’ of the wasp’s ovipositor. Sex ratio of offspring was male-biased, perhaps due to inbreeding in the laboratory colony from which P. lounsburyi was sourced. Female wasps carried ca. 25–35 eggs at their time of death, suggesting that they were time limited rather than egg limited. Integration of conservation biological control (e.g., food provisioning) and classical biological control (release of an exotic natural enemy) have promise to suppress olive fruit fly populations. Evaluation of the effect of food provisioning on P. lounsburyi reproductive success under open field conditions is warranted.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the Vialla family for allowing us to conduct this study at the Domaine de l’Oulivie. We thank D. Boykin (USDA-ARS) for statistical advice, and A. Blanchet and M. La-Spina (both USDA-ARS) for providing P. lounsburyi. Helpful comments on the manuscript were given by E. Riddick (USDA-ARS) and anonymous reviewers. This work was supported by USDA-ARS appropriated funding. This article reports the results of research only. Mention of a proprietary product does not constitute an endorsement or a recommendation by the USDA for its use. The USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. The U. S. Government has the right to retain a non-exclusive, royalty-free license in and to any copyright of this article.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. USDA-ARS U.S. Vegetable Laboratory, 2700 Savannah Highway, Charleston, SC, 29414, USA

    Livy Williams III

  2. INRA, Dijon, France

    Olivia Pointurier

  3. Dept. of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada

    Pauline Deschodt

  4. USDA-ARS European Biological Control Laboratory, Montferrier-sur-Lez, France

    Livy Williams III, Olivia Pointurier & Pauline Deschodt

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LW conceived the study, designed the experiments, and analyzed the data. All authors contributed to the laboratory and field research and writing and review of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Livy Williams III.

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Williams, L., Pointurier, O. & Deschodt, P. Affect of food provisioning on survival and reproductive success of the olive fruit fly parasitoid, Psyttalia lounsburyi, in the field. Arthropod-Plant Interactions 13, 299–309 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11829-019-09684-1

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