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Meteorus pulchricornis Basket-cocoon Wasp       No Local Name
f.BRACONIDAE Braconid Wasps sf.Meteorinae
Meteorus pulchricornis Basket-cocoon Wasp       No Local Name
f.BRACONIDAE Braconid Wasps sf.Meteorinae
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Cook Islands Status Summary

Show Notes
    Intl. NamesBasket‑cocoon Wasp EN    [cocoon suspended on a thread], Basket‑cocoon Parasitoid EN
    Local NamesNo Content
    Pacific NamesNo Content
    Sci. NamesMeteorus pulchricornis (accepted name) , Perilitus pulchricornis [Original, Belgium], Meteorus japonicus [from Japan]
    High Tax. Eng.k.Animals, p.Arthropods, spc.Hexapods, c.Insects, f.Braconid Wasps - Wasp
    High Tax. Latink.ANIMALIA, p.ARTHROPODA, sp.ATELOCERATA, spc.HEXAPODA, c.INSECTA, sc.PTERYGOTA, o.Hymenoptera, so.Apocrita, spf.Ichneumonoidea, f.BRACONIDAE, sf.Meteorinae
    Natl. PresencePresent - probably
    Sth. PresenceRRPMG?AT?MK?MT?AK?PL?MN?TK?
    Nth. PresenceTN?MH?RK?PK?NS?SW?
    VouchersRR2005  
    Local OriginIntroduced; Recent; Naturalised
    Global RangeNo Content
    HabitatLand [Parasite on caterpillars]
    ThreatenedNo Content
    InvasivenessNo Content
    BiosecurityNo Content
    Medical StatusNo Content
    Harmful StatusNo Content
    UsesBiocontrol - agriculture [of caterpillars, but may damage native biodiversity also]
    IdentificationNo Content
    Similar SpeciesNo Content
    Interest NoteIs it a pest? or a beneficial insect? It is an extreme genemore...ralist larval parasitoid attacking any exposed lepidopteran larvae. I have reared it out of every lepidopteran species I have collected on vegetable crops in New Zealand except Pieris rapae (white butterfly). On brassicas, it readily attacks Helicoverpa armigera and Spodoptera litura, but I have also reared it from Plutella xylostella (DBM, Diamond-back Moth). From micro Lepidoptera such as DBM, the cocoons are very small which would be a clue for you. Being 5 mm long I would say it probably came out of Spodoptera, not DBM. It attacks small larvae (2nd instar) and emerges from about medium 4th instar stages, not letting the host grow very large.

    We only have females in New Zealand (thelytokous) which makes us believe it originated in Asia which has females only, whereas Europe have males and females present (arrhenotokous = biparental). Yours [Maja's image] of course is a female.

    We have reared it from about 30 species from 8 families of Lepidoptera in NZ.

    Our fear is it is penetrating into native habitats and attacking native fauna and upsetting native parasitoids, etc. [Pestnet email 15/3/2005, Graham Walker, Crop and Food Research, Auckland. Also mentions: NZ Journal of Zoology, 2004 vol. 31: 33-44, paper by Dr Jo Berry and G.Walker.]

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Multimedia & Other Resources

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    speciesid 14388
    Adult female and pupa case
    speciesid 14388
    Adult from Potter Wasp nest

Vernacular Names

Scientific Names and Taxonomy

National Distribution & Vouchers

Identification

Local Origin and Global Range

Habitat

Species Uses

Citation Information

McCormack, Gerald (2026) Cook Islands Biodiversity & Ethnobiology Database, Version 2026.03.23 - Cook Islands Natural Heritage Trust, Rarotonga. Online at https://naturalheritage.gov.ck/cibed
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speciesid 14388

Adult female and pupa case [5mmBL] - Cook Islands, Rarotonga - Maja Poeschko 2005

speciesid 14388

Adult from Potter Wasp nest [4mmBL] - Cook Islands, Rarotonga - Gerald McCormack 2022-09


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speciesid 14388
Meteorus pulchricornis
Basket-cocoon Wasp
      No Local Name
BRACONIDAE

5AUz016_Mete-pulc_CK-RR1_MPoeschko1-5mmBL_2005-02_TX.jpg// 5AUz016_Mete-pulc_CK-RR1_MPoeschko1-5mmBL_2005-02_MX.jpg// {Meteorus pulchricornis} // Basket-cocoon Wasp//       No Local Name// BRACONIDAE//



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