Parasitoids of the invasive Halyomorpha halys (Heteroptera: Pentatomidae) in Bulgaria and the rate of parasitism at field conditions

The Brown marmorated stink bug (Halyomorpha halys) is an invasive species in Bulgaria, first reported in 2016 and since then mass spread all over the country, causing serious damage to many agricultural crops and ornamentals. The aim of this study was to establish which of the native parasitoid species would attack the eggs of H. halys and to evaluate the rate of parasitism under field conditions. The egg masses of H. halys were collected from several agricultural crops in the region of Plovdiv in surveys during the summer months and reared under laboratory conditions until hatching at the Insectary of the Faculty of Plant Protection and Agroecology, theAgricultural University-Plovdiv. In 2021, egg parasitoids from five species emerged from the collected eggs and were identified as Trissolcus cultratus, Trissolcus basalis, Anastatus bifasciatus, Ooencyrtus telenomicida, and Ooencyrtus sp. The rate of parasitism in 2021 was 10.57% in June, 21.17% in July and 17.57% August. Keywords: Halyomorpha halys, egg parasitоids, Trissolcus cultratus, Trissolcus basalis, Anastatus bifasciatus, Ooencyrtus telenomicida