Petri dish effect of hyperparasitoids

In nature, resources necessary for reproduction and survival are often spatially distributed or scarce. Parasitoid wasps are insects that develop as larvae in or on a single invertebrate resource (often another insect), while the adults are free living. Parasitoid larvae, exploit hosts for reproduction, while adults rely on carbohydrates, e.g. floral nectar, for maintenance. Finding these different resources may affect fitness related traits such as fecundity and survival. We compared reproduction and longevity in a hyperparasitoid wasp, Gelis agilis, utilizing cocoons of the primary parasitoid Cotesia glomerata as hosts in microcosm arenas consisting of a single Petri dish or two dishes connected by a tube. The number of compartments in each dish was varied and provisioning of food and hosts was either temporally separated by 48h intervals (single-dish microcosms) or spatially separated (two-dish microcosm). In the two experimental designs batches of host cocoons were offered to G. agi..., , , # Petri dish effect of hyperparasitoids Female hyperparasitoid (Gelis agilis) that had been allowed to host feed for 48 h were released in one of the arenas (one female per dish) with four cocoons (Cotesia glomerata) and or honey+water for 48h periods. The number of compartments in a dish (13.5 cm diameter) was varied. Cocoons and or honey+water were replaced every 48h. Cocoons were stored in vials and their fate was recorded (adult hyperparasitoid, adult primary parasitoids, or dead cocoon when nothing emerged within a month since exposure to the hyperparasitoid). **Experiment 1----Single dish experiment alternating cocoons and food every 48h** Provisioning of cocoons and honey + plus water were alternated every 48h until the female died. Thus, females had access to only hosts for 48h, followed by access to only carbohydrates + water for 48h. This protocol was repeated until death of the female Single dish arenas with a single compartment, 2, 4, 8 or 16 compartments