Cotesia is a genus of braconid wasps first described by Peter Cameron in 1891 and named in honour of E. C. Cotes. Some species parasitize caterpillars of species considered pests, and are used as biocontrol agents. Cotesia congregata parasitizes the tomato and the tobacco hornworms. C. glomerata and C. rubecula feed on the cabbage white and other white butterfly caterpillars. C. gonopterygis and C. risilis are host-specific and parasitize the common brimstone.Lozan, Aurel; Spitzer, Karel; Jaroš, Josef (2012-06-01). "Isolated peat bog habitats and their food connections: parasitoids (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonoidea) and their lepidopteran hosts". Journal of Insect Conservation. 16 (3): 391–397. ISSN 1366-638X. doi:10.1007/s10841-011-9425-4.
The wasp C. melanoscelus parasitizes the caterpillar of the spongy moth. It, and the spongy moth, are native to Europe. The spongy moth is an invasive species in North America, and C. melanoscelus has been imported as a biocontrol of the moth. Cotesia icipe is a parasitoid of Spodoptera littoralis and beet armyworm (Spodoptera exigua) which are pests of amaranth crops.
Species List of Cotesia species
See also List of Cotesia species
References
External links Preliminary evolutionary relationships within the parasitoid wasp genus Cotesia
Hymenoptera Institute. U. Kentucky