Acerophagus papayae Noyes and Schauff

(Insecta: Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae)

Acerophagus papayae is an endoparasitic wasp introduced into the United States for classical biological control of the papaya mealybug, Paracoccus marginatus Williams and Granara de Willink.

The adult wasps are pale orange with green eyes and red ocelli, or simple eyes. The wings are mostly transparent. Females are 0.6 to 0.8 mm long, and males are somewhat smaller, 0.4 to 0.7 mm long.

The female lays one egg inside the papaya mealybug and prefers to oviposit into second instar females of the host. Development occurs inside the host, and developmental time from egg to adult eclosion is about 13 days. Throughout her adult lifetime, a female may parasitize up to 100 papaya mealybug hosts.

Acerophagus papayae is originally from Mexico. Released in Guam and the Republic of Palau, this and two other species of parasitoids have successfully controlled papaya mealybug populations in these countries.

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Dorsal view of adult Acerophagus papayae Noyes and Schauff

(Photographer: National Bureau of Agriculturally Important Insects [NBAII], India, http://www.nbaii.res.in, with permission 2013-06-11)

Adult female of Acerophagus papayae Noyes and Schauff, lateral view

(Photographer: National Bureau of Agriculturally Important Insects [NBAII], India, http://www.nbaii.res.in, with permission 2013-06-13)