The parasitic hymenoptera and biological control of the African Ichneumonidae
1991
Gupta, V.K.
Interest in the study of parasitic Hymenoptera has been revitalized consequent to recent emphasis on biological control and the role that the parasitoids play in effective biological control methods. However, our knowledge of the species of parasitic Hymenoptera, and their host associations is rather imperfect, and the family Ichneumonidae is no exception. The potential that parasitic Hymenoptera offer in the control of unwanted pests, and thereby increase agricultural output, cannot be utilized unless basic taxonomic and biological studies on them are fully supported and funded. The known species of Ichneumonidae at the present moment are approximately 19,000, which is only about 10% of the estimated number of species occurring in the world. Most species occurring in the tropical countries are unknown. The described number of species from various regions are approximately 7000 in Eurasia, 4500 in Indo-Australian area, 3500 in North America, 2000 in South America, and about 2000 in tropical Africa. The African ichneumonid fauna is rich and diverse, but very few areas have been intensively and extensively explored. Certain countries like Malagasy Republic and Zaire have been more extensively explored than the others, but recent studies indicate that species diversity is much greater than what we know today. Catches made in limited areas by using Malaise traps in places like Kampala, Uganda during 1964-1965 and in Freetown, Sierra Leone during 1969-1970 increased the number of species 300-400 per cent.
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