Identification, Images, & Information
For Insects, Spiders & Their Kin
For the United States & Canada
 

Register · Log In
HomeGuideID RequestRecentFrassForumsDonateHelp
Clickable Guide
Moths Butterflies Flies Caterpillars Flies Dragonflies Flies Mantids Cockroaches Bees and Wasps Walkingsticks Earwigs Ants Termites Hoppers and Kin Hoppers and Kin Beetles True Bugs Fleas Grasshoppers and Kin Ticks Spiders Scorpions Centipedes Millipedes

Calendar
Upcoming Events

Registration is open for the 2024 BugGuide gathering in Idaho July 24-27

Moth submissions from National Moth Week 2023

Photos of insects and people from the 2022 BugGuide gathering in New Mexico, July 20-24

Photos of insects and people from the Spring 2021 gathering in Louisiana, April 28-May 2

Photos of insects and people from the 2019 gathering in Louisiana, July 25-27

Photos of insects and people from the 2018 gathering in Virginia, July 27-29


Previous events
TaxonomyBrowseInfoImagesLinksBooksData
Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera) » "Parasitica" - Parasitoid Wasps » Braconid and Ichneumonid Wasps (Ichneumonoidea) » Braconid Wasps (Braconidae) » Meteorinae » Meteorus
Photo#1013758
Caterpillar And Parasitoid - Meteorus - female
Copyright © 2014 George Smiley

Caterpillar And Parasitoid - Meteorus - Female
Karnack, Harrison County, Texas, USA
October 25, 2014
Size: 6mm (body)
No nice fresh moth emerged, instead the attached parasitoid cut a circular escape hatch in the pupal case and exited.

Images of this individual: tag all
Caterpillar And Parasitoid - Antaeotricha - male Caterpillar And Parasitoid - Antaeotricha - male Caterpillar And Parasitoid - Meteorus - female Caterpillar And Parasitoid - Meteorus - female
tag · login or register to post comments
Contributed by George Smiley on 25 October, 2014 - 8:48pm
Last updated 26 October, 2014 - 7:43am

Moved
Moved from ID Request.
… Charley Eiseman, 26 October, 2014 - 7:43am login or register to post comments

Do you have a photo
of the pupal case?
… Charley Eiseman, 25 October, 2014 - 9:28pm login or register to post comments

 
I Have The Case
I can take a photo if you like, but now that I look at it with a hand lens it is that of the wasp.
… George Smiley, 25 October, 2014 - 9:44pm login or register to post comments

 
That's what I wanted to check
It would be strange for a Meteorus to emerge from the pupa of its host. I presume the cocoon looks more or less like this?
… Charley Eiseman, 25 October, 2014 - 10:23pm login or register to post comments

 
Sounds right…
When Meteorus larvae emerge from a host, they typically produce a cocoon at the end of a single silk thread that enables it to hang from the leaf. They would emerge from their own cocoon as an adult, not from the parasitized caterpillar which drops off from the leaf and dies. I think this is what is being implied.
… Ross Hill, 26 October, 2014 - 1:04am login or register to post comments

 
Pretty Much
It even spun a suspension thread but that proved pointless as it was stuck between two leaves courtesy of the caterpillar.
… George Smiley, 26 October, 2014 - 12:00am login or register to post comments

Meteorus…
See reference here.
… Ross Hill, 25 October, 2014 - 9:15pm login or register to post comments

Comment viewing options
Select your preferred way to display the comments and click 'Save settings' to activate your changes.

Disclaimer: Dedicated naturalists volunteer their time and resources here to provide this service. We strive to provide accurate information, but we are mostly just amateurs attempting to make sense of a diverse natural world. If you need expert professional advice, contact your local extension office.

Contributors own the copyright to and are solely responsible for contributed content.
Click the contributor's name for licensing and usage information.
Everything else copyright © 2003-2024 Iowa State University, unless otherwise noted.

Bugguide is hosted by:

Plant Pathology, Entomology and Microbiology at Iowa State University logo

Printer Friendly Version 		Terms of Use
Privacy Statement
Site Map
Contact