The effect of temperature was evaluated on egg parasitization of the angoumois grain moth, Sitotroga cerealella (Olivier, 1819), by Trichogramma pretiosum Riley, 1879 as a basis for mass production of T. pretiosum or biological control of S. cerealella in stored corn T. pretiosum parasitization was studied under six constant temperatures (18, 20, 22, 25, 30, and 32°C) and was evaluated through the counting number of darkened eggs (parasitization characteristic) and the number of emerged parasitoids. The highest temperatures were the best for T. pretiosum parasitization. At 30°C, 97.6% of the females were effective on parasitization with an average of 18.8 S. cerealella eggs per female during the first 48 h period and a high parasitoid emergence (88.5%).
biological control; stored grain; Sitotroga; Trichogramma