PEET: Monographic Research on Parasitic Hymenoptera

Texas A&M Research Foundation, College Station TX

Investigators

Abstract

Parasitic wasps are extraordinarily diverse. At least half of the species have not yet been formally described, and many of the 72,000 described species are comparatively poorly known and notoriously difficult to identify. Virtually all parasitic wasps attack and kill other insects and many appear to be quite host-specific. They are therefore essential components in the complex food webs of natural ecosystems and they provide a valuable source of natural enemies for pest insects in managed ecosystems. The gradual attrition of specialists on some of the largest families of parasitic wasps has led to a situation in which the body of knowledge necessary to recognize genera and describe species now resides with a very few, aging individuals. This problem will be addressed by a mentoring process whereby trainees are apprenticed to specialists in three of the larger, more difficult groups of parasitic wasps. Through specific cooperative agreements, students will benefit from outstanding specialists who oversee unmatched collection resources and whose expertise in these focal groups (taxa) will soon be lost. Trainees will describe numerous new species and prepare comprehensive taxonomic treatises (monographs) that will facilitate identification and provide the essential foundation for all future work on these insects. As monographic research heads inexorably towards fully electronic output, comprehensive image databases will become essential ingredients. The synergistic nature of the collaborative effort on the imaging aspects of the monographic process provides our trainees with an exciting opportunity to participate directly (and contribute substantially) to this development. Trainees will prepare monographic treatments for approximately 130 taxa (110 genera in the ctenopelmatine Ichneumonidae and ambositrine Diapriidae and about 10 species each in the ichneumonid genus Pantorhaestes Foerster and the figitid genus Agrostocynips Diaz). A badly needed catalog clarifying the status and generic placement of the approximately 900 described species of eucoiline Figitidae will also be prepared. Training of the next generation of scientists is an essential component of the PEET program, and the collaborative nature of the project, with its diverse array of outstanding specialists, will provide exceptionally broad training and experience for the students in all aspects of modern, collection-based systematics research. One postdoctoral and three Ph.D. students will be trained under this program, and several undergraduate students will assist with curation and imaging. The improved taxonomy and more natural classifications of parasitic wasps provided by trainees under this program will enable better characterization and management of biological diversity. The utility of parasitic wasps in applied programs (such as biological control) means that this project also directly supports research that targets a more sustainable agriculture with fewer negative impacts on the environment.