Trophic Relationships of Aphid Hyperparasitoids (Hymenoptera) in Costa Rica

Abstract

 Aphids are attacked by primary parasitoids (mostly Braconidae: Aphidiinae), which in turn are parasitized by hyperparasitoids (secondary parasitoids). We report for the first time in Costa Rica some trophic relationships between host plants, aphids, primary parasitoids and hyperparasitoids. Twenty nine species of aphids yielded 2832 primary parasitoids and 173 hyperparasitoids, the latter from just 12 of the aphid species. Five species of hyperparasitoids were obtained but three of these accounted for 98 % of all indviduals: Asaphes californicus, Pachyneuron aphidis (Pteromalidae) and Syrphophagus aphidivorus (Encyrtidae). The altitudinal and geographical distribution of each hyperparasitoid taxon is discussed within the context of the Costa Rican fauna.