Are there parasitoids that use monarch larvae as hosts?
Are there parasitoids that use monarch larvae as hosts?
Both fly and wasp parasitoids use monarch larvae as hosts, but the most important larval parasitoid is probably a fly species in the family Tachinidae. This family includes about 10,000 species, most of which parasitize Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths), although they also parasitize Hymenoptera (ants and bees), Heteroptera (true bugs and their relatives), Coleoptera (beetles), Diptera (flies and mosquitoes), Dermaptera (earwigs), Orthoptera (grasshoppers and crickets), Chilopoda (centipedes), as well as some scorpions and spiders. Research in the Monarch Lab suggests that species Lespesia archippivora (La) is the most important monarch tachinid parasitoid. It is widespread throughout North and Central America, has been found in Brazil, and was purposely introduced into Hawaii for biocontrol in 1898.