Acerophagus notativentris
Grape Mealybug Parasitoid

Photography by Max E. Badgley (1922-2006)

Acerophagus notativentris Female resting on the dorsal surface of a grape leaf.

Photo © Max E. Badgley, published with permission from the Max E. Badgley Estate, with special thanks to the University of California, Riverside, who kindly supplied this image from the UCR Chalcidoidea database collection.

This tiny parasitic wasp is best known as a parasite of the grape mealybug Pseudococcus maritimus. Three species of mealybugs, commonly known as grape, obscure, and longtailed mealybugs, and all in the genus Pseudococcus,  infest vineyards in the United States. The grape mealybug is most common in California, but is spreading to Washington and Oregon, and is also a serious pest of apple, pear, peach, and grape throughout the U.S. west coast, as well as an occasional pest of orchards and vineyards in the midwestern and eastern regions of the U.S., and in eastern Canada. 

Several parasitic wasp species are known to attack grape mealybugs. Though research on these parasites has been sparse, they are believed to play an important role in keeping mealybug populations in check.  However, because Cryptolaemus montrouzieri, a lady beetle known as the mealybug destroyer, appears even more effective in controlling these pests, Acerophagus notativentris has taken a back seat to that predator. Besides Cryptolaemus montrouzieri and Acerophagus notativentris, Cecidomyiid flies, lacewings, minute pirate bugs, and a number of spiders also prey on mealybugs.

Text compiled and edited by J.Cates,  curator

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