Parasitoids of Fruit-Infesting Tephritidae

See comments on the Fopius page.

Fopius schlingeri is from Queensland, where it has been reared from various species of Bactrocera in a variety of host fruits (Clausen et al. 1965, Wharton 1999). It attacks at least four species of Bactrocera developing in the fruits of at least three plant families. There are slight differences among species of Fopius in the exposure of the labrum and Fopius schlingeri provides a good example of a species with a partially exposed labrum. The ovipositor in Fopius schlingeri is virtually identical in form to that of Fopius arisanus, strongly suggesting a biology similar to the latter in which the parasitoid oviposits into the egg of its host. Field observations kindly supplied by Greg Quimio during his PhD research at the University of Queensland appear to confirm this.

A tabular summary of morphological features that facilitates comparison of the known species of Fopius is provided by Wharton (1999).