Temporal variation of Brown and Green Lacewings (Neuroptera: Hemerobiidae and Chrysopidae) collected with McPhail traps from a fruit orchard in Southeast Brazil

This study was aimed at the identification of the Neuroptera (Insecta) obtained with McPhail traps in an orchard of native and exotic fruits in Jaboticabal, SP, Brazil (21°14’S / 48°17’W). Weekly sampling took place between May 2009 and April 2010. 187 specimens of Neuroptera were obtained: Nusalala tessellata (Gerstaecker, 1888) (Hemerobiidae) (176 specimens / 94.1% of the total), Leucochrysa cruentata (Schneider, 1851) (6 / 3.2%), Ceraeochrysa cubana (Hagen, 1861), Ceraeochrysa everes (Banks, 1920), Chrysoperla externa (Hagen, 1861), Leucochrysa affinis Freitas & Penny, 2001 and Leucochrysa rodriguezi (Navas, 1913) (Chrysopidae) (1 / 0.5%, each species). Nusalala tessellata was the most abundant species, with the highest frequencies recorded in August 2009 and March 2010; such frequencies coincided with the fructification of Vangueria madagascariensis Gmelin (Rubiaceae) and Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck (Rutaceae), respectively. The use of McPhail traps can assist in the detection of beneficial insects in agroecosystems and establishment of better sustainable control measures.