Geographical Range and Laboratory Studies on Apanteles opuntiarum (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) in Argentina, a Candidate for Biological Control of Cactoblastis cactorum (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) in North America

Abstract The cactus moth, Cactoblastis cactorum (Berg) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), is a pest that threatens native Opuntia spp. in North America. Control tactics developed and implemented against this invasive pest successfully eradicated the moth in Mexico and on barrier islands in the United States. However, with the cancellation of the regional management program in the United States, no control tactics are being implemented to mitigate the expansion of the moth's geographical range. Hence, an integrated approach including biological control is proposed to regulate the population of C. cactorum in North America. Field surveys of the recently described parasitoid, Apanteles opuntiarum Martinez & Berta, were carried out within the C. cactorum native range in Argentina, and laboratory studies were conducted to develop a parasitoid rearing protocol. Apanteles opuntiarum was the most common parasitoid of C. cactorum and their field distributions were similar. In the laboratory, the parasitoid's reproductive s...