FECUNDITY, LONGEVITY, AND INTRINSIC NATURAL RATE OF INCREASE OF EPIDINOCARSIS-LOPEZI (DE-SANTIS) (HYMENOPTERA, ENCYRTIDAE)

A laboratory study of the fecundity, longevity, and intrinsic natural rate of increase of Epidinocarsis lopezi (De Santis) (Hymenoptera: Encyrtidae) was performed at 26-degrees-C, the average temperature observed in the Congo during pullulation of its host Phenacoccus manihoti Mat.-Ferr. (Homoptera: Pseudococcidae). With 30 mealybugs per female per day, the parasitoid lives for an average of 41.4 days and lays 558.5 eggs. The net reproduction rate (R0) was calculated to be 269.9 females per female per generation, the average duration of a generation (T) was 33.9 days, and die intrinsic natural rate of increase of the parasitoid (r(m)) was 0.213. The fecundity observed in E. lopezi in this study was much higher than the figures previously reported. The r(m) of the parasitoid appeared to be higher than that determined by other authors for the mealybug. The limits of such a comparison are discussed.