Kauaʻi record · KCA-IA-00181
Aroplectrus dimerus
Open this record in the interactive Atlas
About Aroplectrus dimerus
Aroplectrus dimerus belongs to Eulophidae in the order Hymenoptera. Its recorded origin status is introduced.
Feeding, reproduction, and biological control
Aroplectrus dimerus is an external parasitoid of the stinging nettle caterpillar, Oxyplax pallivitta. Females lay eggs on a caterpillar; the developing parasitoid larvae feed externally and later pupate beneath the host remains. Hawaiʻi research includes host-specificity testing and field evaluation. Its ecological role is therefore a documented host-parasitoid relationship, rather than a generic claim that all small wasps are beneficial. Local efficacy still depends on field evidence.
Kauaʻi occurrence and evidence
Atlas occurrence category: Present. Matsunaga, Howarth & Kumashiro (2019) Table 1 includes Kauaʻi island code 'Ka'; first-detection year shown as 2010; reported island distribution: Ha, Ka, Ma, Oa.
Account coverage
Published species details have been added. A complete Kauaʻi-specific account of identification, habitat, feeding, reproduction, and population trend is not yet established by the sources linked here.
Names and classification
- Scientific name
- Aroplectrus dimerus
- Family
- Eulophidae
- Order
- Hymenoptera
- Record type
- species
Kauaʻi occurrence and status
- Kauaʻi occurrence
- Present
- Origin
- Introduced
- Conservation status
- Not assessed
Process and seasonal context
- Seasonal description
- Aroplectrus dimerus belongs to Eulophidae in the order Hymenoptera. Its recorded origin status is introduced.