Comparison of Hymenopterous Parasites of House Fly, Musca domestica (Diptera: Muscidae), Pupae in Different Livestock and Poultry Production Systems

By monitoring weekly with house fly ( Musca domestica L.) pupae placed in mesh bags in the manure, 10 species of house fly parasites were found in confined poultry, dairy, beef, swine, and sheep housing: Muscidifurax raptor Girault and Sanders, Spalangia , sp. nov., near drosophilae Ashmead, S. cameroni Perkins, S. endius Walker, S. nigroaenea Curtis, S. drosophilae Ashmead, Pachycrepoideus vindemiae (Rondani), Nasonia vitripennis Walker, Dirhinus texanus (Ashmead) and Trichopria sp. By the same monitoring method five species were recovered from beef and dairy cattle pastures: M. raptor, S. cameroni, S. endius, P. vindemiae , and D. texanus . All sampling was conducted in the Piedmont region of North Carolina. M. raptor, P. vindemiae , and S. cameroni were the most prevalent parasites in both the confined systems and the pastures, accounting for 95 to 98% of all parasites recovered. House fly pupae exposed to parasites in the confined poultry, swine, and dairy systems exhibited higher rates of parasitism than in the pastures and the beef and sheep barns.