First record of Ophelimus maskelli in Portugal
Ophelimus maskelli (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) is a gall wasp causing damage to Eucalyptus species which is currently spreading in the EPPO region (EPPO RS 2006/188, 2006/189, 2007/031, 2007/151, 2009/214). In Europe, it was first reported in Italy in 2000 (but at that time it was misidentified as O. eucalypti). In 2003, it was detected in the south and in the north-east of Spain in 2004. During intensive surveys on eucalyptus gall wasps carried out in Portugal in 2003 and 2004, only Leptocybe invasa was found. O. maskelli was first detected in April 2006 near Lisbon on Eucalyptus camaldulensis which is one of the main eucalyptus species (together with E. globulus) growing in the Iberian Peninsula. Surveys conducted in 2007 showed that O. maskelli mainly occurred in the south of Portugal (near the border with Spain) and in the centre, near Lisbon. During this survey, a parasitoid Closterocerus chamaeleon (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) was recovered from naturally parasitized O. maskelli. In Portugal, C. chamaeleon has not been used for biological control, however it has been released in Italy and it is supposed that it may have spread from there. This is the first report of Ophelimus maskelli in Portugal.
Sources
Branco M, Boavida C, Durand N, Franco JC, Mendel Z (2009) Presence of the Eucalyptus gall wasp Ophelimus maskelli and its parasitoid Closterocerus chamaeleon in Portugal: first record, geographic distribution and host preference. Phytoparasitica 37(1), 51-54.