Molecular phylogeny of Trissolcus wasps (Hymenoptera, Scelionidae) associated with Halyomorpha halys (Hemiptera, Pentatomidae)

As the brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys) has spread across the Northern Hemisphere, research on its egg parasitoids has increased accordingly. These studies have included species-level taxonomy, experimental assessments of host ranges in quarantine, and surveys to assess parasitism in the field. We here present a molecular phylogeny of Trissolcus that includes all species that have been reared from live H. halys eggs. Species-group concepts are discussed and revised in the light of the phylogenetic analyses. The analyses indicate that the ability to successfully parasitize H. halys eggs is not phylogenetically constrained, but the most effective parasitoids are all found in the flavipes species group.