''Trichilogaster'' is a small

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

chalcid wasp Chalcid wasps (, , for their metallic colour) are insects within the superfamily Chalcidoidea, part of the order Hymenoptera. The superfamily contains some 22,500 known species, and an estimated total diversity of more than 500,000 species, m ...

s in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Melanosomellidae Melanosomellidae is a family of parasitic wasps in the superfamily Chalcidoidea Chalcid wasps (, , for their metallic colour) are insects within the superfamily Chalcidoidea, part of the order Hymenoptera. The superfamily contains some 22,5 ...

, previously they were included in

Pteromalidae The Pteromalidae are a large family of wasps, the majority being parasitoids of other insects. They are found throughout the world in virtually all habitats, and many are important as biological control agents. The oldest known fossil is known fr ...

subfamily In biological classification, a subfamily (Latin: ', plural ') is an auxiliary (intermediate) taxonomic rank, next below family but more inclusive than genus. Standard nomenclature rules end botanical subfamily names with "-oideae", and zo ...

Ormocerinae. With one described exception, they all are

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Aus ...

species that are gall-formers on Australian species of''

Acacia ''Acacia'', commonly known as wattles or acacias, is a genus of about of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa, South America, and Austral ...

''. The exception is an Arabian species. Apart from its ecological interest, the genus is of practical importance because some of its members are successful

biocontrol Biological control or biocontrol is a method of pest control, controlling pests, whether pest animals such as insects and mites, weeds, or pathogens affecting animals or phytopathology, plants by bioeffector, using other organisms. It relies o ...

agents in South Africa at least, where ''T. acaciaelongifoliae'' and ''T. signiventris'' have been established successfully to control invasive Australian ''Acacia'' species, notably '' Acacia longifolia'' and ''

Acacia pycnantha ''Acacia pycnantha'', most commonly known as the golden wattle, is a tree of the family Fabaceae. It grows to a height of and has phyllodes (flattened leaf stalks) instead of true leaves. The profuse fragrant, golden flowers appear in late ...

''.

Species

The species most recently recognised in a revision of the genus are: *''

Trichilogaster acaciaelongifoliae ''Trichilogaster acaciaelongifoliae'' is an Australian bud-galling wasp from the family Pteromalidae that parasitises, among others, ''Acacia longifolia'' (long-leaved wattle, or Sydney golden wattle), which has become an invasive plant, invasiv ...

'' (Froggatt, 1892) *'' Trichilogaster arabica'' Ferrière, 1947 *'' Trichilogaster channingi'' (Girault, 1913) *'' Trichilogaster esculenta'' Ferrière, 1947 *''

Trichilogaster flavivena ''Trichilogaster'' is a small genus of chalcid wasps in the Family (biology), family Melanosomellidae, previously they were included in Family (biology), family Pteromalidae Family (biology), subfamily Ormocerinae. With one described exception, ...

'' (Girault, 1931) *'' Trichilogaster maideni'' (Froggatt, 1892) *'' Trichilogaster olgae'' Prinsloo & Neser, 2007 *'' Trichilogaster pendulae'' Mayr, 1905 *'' Trichilogaster signiventris'' (Girault, 1931) *''

Trichilogaster stefani ''Trichilogaster'' is a small genus of chalcid wasps in the Family (biology), family Melanosomellidae, previously they were included in Family (biology), family Pteromalidae Family (biology), subfamily Ormocerinae. With one described exception, ...

'' Prinsloo & Neser, 2007 "''Epiperilampus atra''", "''Epiperilampus atricorpus''" and "''Epiperilampus significatus''" are now regarded as synonyms of ''Trichilogaster maideni''. In the review, 13 species of documented host plants were listed, comprising one '' Paraserianthes'' and 12 ''Acacia'' species.

References

External links

''Trichilogaster''
at WaspWeb Pteromalidae Hymenoptera genera {{Chalcidoidea-stub