Overview
Eulophids display a remarkable diversity in their biologies. Parasitoid forms can be endoparasitoids or ectoparasitoids, idiobionts or koinobionts, solitary or gregarious, primary parasitoids, hyperparasitoids or facultative hyperparasitoids, host specialists or generalists. Parasitoid species can attack eggs, larvae, pupae or even adults in a few cases. Predatory eulophids display a specialised form of parasitism in which the wasp larva consumes many prey within an enclosed space (such as a gall or egg sac). Species that develop in this way are known to consume spider eggs in silken egg sacs, eriophyid mites in galls, or even nematodes. Phytophagous species again display a variety of life styles, and may be inquilines within galls, gall-inducers themselves, or internal seed feeders. The Eulophidae are an important family for biological control. A few Australian eulophids that form galls on
Eucalyptus
have recently become invasive pests in other parts of the world.
Description
The Eulophidae are the largest family, and probably the most commonly collected, of all chalcidoids. Over 800 species are described for Australia and 50 for New Zealand. Eulophids are characterised by having the tarsi 4-segmented, with the fore tibial spur short and straight, the antenna with 2 4 (rarely five) funicular segments, the metasoma petiolate and not broadly attached to the mesosoma, and the marginal vein of the fore wing often relatively long.
Distribution
Boucek (1988) recognised four subfamilies in the Eulophidae: Entedontinae, Euderinae, Eulophinae and Tetrastichinae. However, more recently Gauthier et al. (2000) modified this classification by placing the Elasmini (previously recognised as a separate family) in the Eulophinae. Keys to Australasian genera are included in Boucek (1988).
Further information about the Eulophidae can be found in Boucek 1988, Gauthier, LaSalle, Quicke & Godfray 2000, Naumann 1991, Noyes 2001, Noyes & Valentine 1989.