The name Trichogramma refers to a number of tiny wasps belonging to the family Trichogrammatidae. They are stout-bodied, minute wasps, which can hardly be seen without a hand lens or microscope. Trichogramma is an important bio-control agent as they are egg parasitoids, mainly of Lepidopteran eggs. Up to three wasp larvae may develop in each Lepidopteran egg. Most trichogrammatid species will attack a range of host species. When a lepidopteran egg is parasitized the eggs turn black as the parasitoid develops inside. From these darkened eggs the adult wasps will eventually emerge.
Egg parasitoid species of the genus Trichogramma have been studied and used in agriculture for a long time. For example sugarcane stalkborers have been controlled for the last 40 years by using Trichogramma egg parasitoids. These are mass produced and sold to farmers as small cards, which contain hundreds of parasitized eggs.
A well known natural enemy is the Trichogramma wasp. This tiny insect is mass produced in many countries.
In Thailand, the bio-centers of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DOAE) have set up mass rearing units to produce Trichogramma. Eggs of Rice moth (Corcyra sp.) are used as a host. These eggs are glued on small cards and then female parasitoid wasps will parasitize these eggs. These “tricho cards” then contain hundreds of parasitized eggs. Cards can be temporary stored in refrigerators before taking them to the farms.
