''Tetrastichus'' is a genus of
hymenopteran
insect
Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...
s of the family
Eulophidae
The Eulophidae are a large family of hymenopteran insects, with over 4,300 described species in some 300 genera. The family includes the genus '' Elasmus'', which used to be treated as a separate family, "Elasmidae", and is now treated as a su ...
.
''
Tetrastichus planipennisi'' is a
parasitoid of the
emerald ash borer
The emerald ash borer (''Agrilus planipennis''), also known by the acronym EAB, is a green buprestid or jewel beetle native to north-eastern Asia that feeds on ash species. Females lay eggs in bark crevices on ash trees, and larvae feed underne ...
, a wood boring insect native to Asia which is an invasive species in North America. ''T. planipennisi'' is being evaluated as a
biological control
Biological control or biocontrol is a method of controlling pests, such as insects, mites, weeds, and plant diseases, using other organisms. It relies on predation, parasitism, herbivory, or other natural mechanisms, but typically als ...
agent.
Host species
The genus ''Tetrastichus'' parasitizes many different species of Lepidoptera, such as ''
Pyralis farinalis
''Pyralis'' is a genus of snout moths. It was described by Carl Linnaeus in 1758.
Species
* '' Pyralis caustica'' (Meyrick, 1884)
* '' Pyralis costinotalis'' Hampson, 1917
* '' Pyralis electalis'' Hulst, 1886
* '' Pyralis farinalis'' (Linnaeus, ...
''.
References
Key to Nearctic eulophid generaUniversal Chalcidoidea Database
Eulophidae
{{Eulophidae-stub