Egg parasitoids of Thaumetopoea pityocampa in the region of Gyumyurdzhinski Snezhnik in Eastern Rhodopes, Bulgaria

The region of Gyumyurdzhinski Snezhnik in the Eastern Rhodopes is the closest in Bulgaria to the Aegean Sea. However, the climate is characterized by specific parameters that are determined by its relief. It is poorly protected from the invasion of cold air masses from the north. From the south, the Gyumyurdzhinski Snezhnik hill restrains the Mediterranean influence. The orography of the area favors the retention of cold air masses and a further drop in temperatures. The experimental material for the study includes 5 generations of Thaumetopoea pityocampa (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2022), collected in 31 locations of four State Forestry Enterprises: Kirkovo, Ardino, Momchilgrad, and Zlatograd. The sample for analysis included 693 egg batches with 148420 eggs in them. Seven primary egg parasitoids were established in this region: Ooencyrtus pityocampae, Baryscapus servadeii, Pediobius bruchicida, Anastatus bifasciatus, Eupelmus vesicularis, E. vladimiri, Trichogramma sp. and one hyperparasitoid (B. transversalis). Dominant parasitoids were B. servadeii and O. pityocampae, and E. vladimiri and P. bruchicida – occasional parasitoids. The hyperparasitoid B. transversalis participated in the complex with a relatively low share. The survival of the egg parasitoids in the laboratory conditions, in which the samples were kept, was low. The total mortality of the parasitoids in larval and adult stages was 47.8%. After collecting the samples, in laboratory conditions, a total of 442 individuals of the hyperparasitoid B. transversalis emerged, of which 56.3% were females and 43.7% were males. The average number of pine processionary moth eggs in a batch was 214.2. 70.8% of all the eggs in the samples hatched successfully. The egg parasitoids are a very serious natural factor, regulating the density of the pine processionary moth, but their impact varied from 2.1% to 30.3%. The natural characteristics of the area, the air temperature during the stages of eggs and young larvae, are favorable for the development of the pine processionary moth. Unhatched larvae without the influence of entomophages were 7.2%.