Caterpillar Parasitoids

Insect

Adults are brown, black or red, slender bodied wasps, 5-35 mm in length. Females have a long, needle-like ovipositor protruding from the end of their abdomen which is used to lay their eggs inside a caterpillar host. Eggs hatch into larvae which feed on the caterpillar. Once the wasp larvae have completed their growth, they exit the dead or dying caterpillar larvae and pupate. Some parasitoids are present in groups inside caterpillar hosts and some are solitary.

Flies

(Diptera): Adults look like house flies, and lay eggs on the outside of caterpillars. Eggs hatch and larvae burrow in and kill the caterpillar or pupae.

Role

Biological control of various species of caterpillars.