Encarsia formosa

Encarsia formosa was first described by A B Gahan (1924) from a greenhouse population in Idaho, USA.

The name formosa means ‘beautiful’ in Latin - and in this case has nothing to do with the former name of the island of Taiwan.

Encarsia formosa is dependent on the whitefly to lay its eggs, and for food, killing it in the process. It parasitizes 16 different species of whitefly in different parts of the world.

Each adult wasp can kill around 100 whitefly nymphs in its lifetime.

Species detail

This parasitoid wasp belongs to a species group (the luteola-group) distinguished by, among other characters, the 4-segmented mid tarsi.

We know E. formosa was originally a new world species, but it may have originated in North, Central or South America.

Taxonomy

Find out how you can recognise E. formosa.
Distribution

This wasp can be found in greenhouses almost anywhere, and is deployed as a highly effective bio-control agent.
Biology

Adult E. formosa seek out their whitefly hosts and lay their eggs in the nymphs. The wasp can kill about a hundred whiteflies in its 12 day lifetime. Find out just how it does it.
References

More information about E. formosa.