Influence of gibberellic acid on some biological parameters of ectoparasitoid, Bracon hebetor (Say, 1836) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae)

Abstract

Different concentrations (2, 5, 10, 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1000 mg/L) of gibberellic acid (GA3) were used to determine the effects of plant growth regulators on development, fecundity, sex ratio and longevity of parasitoid Bracon hebetor (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) reared on greater wax moth, Galleria mellonella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae). Treatment with GA3 prolonged the developmental period of female wasps at 2, 50, 500 and 1000 mg/L and at 10, 500 and 1000 mg/L in male wasps. However, GA3 did not negatively affect the fecundity and sex ratio of parasitoid. Bracon hebetor females reared on GA3-treated hosts had lower longevity at 10, 500 and 1000 mg/L than the females reared on untreated hosts. For males a significant decline in longevity was also recorded at 5 and 10 mg/L with respect to controls.