Natural enemies

The following text was adapted from Natural Enemies Handbook: The Illustrated Guide to Biological Pest Control, Publication 3386, - University of California. Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, by Mary Louise Flint, Steve H. Dreistadt, Jack Kelly Clark (Photographer), University of California Statewide Integrated Pest Management Program (Corporate Author). And also: Introduction to the Study of Insects by Norman F. Johnson, Charles A. Triplehorn.

To find out more information on the individual natural enemies listed below, click on the "Learn more" link in the "common name" column. It will direct you to more additional facts from the Identifying natural enemies web site.

Please note: The information presented at this web site should be considered a guideline to be adapted for your situation. MSU makes no warranty about the use of the information presented here. Read disclaimer.

	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Bombyliidae Photo:t Jeff Evans Photo: Natural History Museum, London	Bee fly	Parasitoid	Most are internal and external parasites of butterfly, moth, bee, and wasp larvae, some attack larvae of beetles, flies, moths, or grasshopper eggs. Most adults are short, very hairy, medium to large flies with long, thin mouthparts. About 3,000 known species.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Braconidae Photo: Jim Kalisch, Tom Clark, Univ of Neb., Entomology	Braconid wasp Learn more	Parasitoid	Parasitize larvae of beetles, caterpillars, flies and sawflies. Adults usually are less than ½ inch long with an abdomen that is slender and longer than the head and thorax combined. Over 1,000 named species worldwide.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Cantharidae Photo: Susan Ellis, www.insectimages.org	Soldier beetle	Predator	Adults of some species feed on nectar and pollen and are often found at flowers. Other adults eat aphids, insect eggs and larvae or feed on both flowers and insects. Adults are elongate, often with red, orange or yellow head and abdomen and black patterning and ¼ to ¾ inch long. Wing covers are soft. Larvae are dark, flattened and elongate, and feed in soil, leaf litter or under bark, primarily on eggs and larvae of beetles, butterflies, and moths.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Carabidae Photo: Debbie Waters, Univ. of Georgia, www.insectimages.org	Predaceous ground beetle Learn more	Predator	Most are predaceous as adults and as larvae, a few species are parasitic. Adults are primarily active at night , often dark in color, and have long legs. Larvae often occur in leaf litter or soil and are elongate. Some feed on seeds and can reduce weed seed populations in agricultural systems. Over 40,000 known species in the world.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Chalcidoidea Photo: Gerald J. Lenhard, www.insectimages.org	Chalcid wasp	Parasitoid	This group includes many families of wasps that have many hosts. Some lay eggs inside of insect eggs, and many parasitize aphids. Other hosts include beetles, flies, moths, sawflies, mealybugs, and scales. These insects are very small, from ¼ inch to less than 1/12 inch long.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Chlamydatus associatus Photo: Cedar Creek Natural History Area	Plant bug	Predator	This species has tubular mouthparts that can point forward. Oval shaped, black with yellow legs, less than ¼ inch long. Wings turn downward and are clear at the end. This species is an aphid predator.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Chrysopidae	Green lacewings Learn more	Predator	Adults of many species are not predaceous. They have very thin, green bodies and green wings with lacy veins. Predaceous larvae have long, curved mandibles that they use to pierce and suck the fluids out of their prey. The larvae are about 1/8 inch long, look like tiny alligators, and prey on most small soft bodied insects. Larvae are often pale with dark markings. Eggs are laid on individual silken stalks. These predators are common in agriculture, gardens and landscapes.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Coccinellidae Photo: Scott Bauer, www.ars.usda.gov	Lady beetles Learn more	Predator	Most adults and larvae feed on soft-bodied insects. These may be important in aphid population control. Adults are rounded, and range in size from tiny to medium-sized (about ¼ inch long). Color ranges from black to brightly colored. Larvae are active and elongate with long legs, and look like tiny alligators.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Cynipoidea Photos: ©2003 Regents, University of Arizona, www.cals.arizona.edu Alan Hadley, www.hadleyweb.pwp. blueyonder.co.uk	Cynipids	Parasitoid	These are wasps less than 1/8 inch long with few wing veins. Most species are black. More than 800 species in the United States, about 640 of which are gall makers and the remainder are parasites on horntails, flies, lacewing cocoons, psyllids, syrphid fly pupae, and other wasps.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Dolichopodidae Photo: Susan Ellis, www.insectimages.org	Long-legged flies	Predator	Adults prey on small insects and are less than ¼ inch long, often metallic green, blue or copper-colored. They are abundant in many places, especially near swamps, streams, in woodlands, and meadows. Larvae are found in varied habitats, including water, mud, decaying wood and grass stems. Not much is known of their feeding habits but some are predaceous.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Empididae Photo: Cedar Creek Natural History Area	Dance flies	Predator	All are predators as larvae and adults. Larvae are pale and cylindrical, and feed on varied prey in litter, soil or water or bark beetles under bark. Adults stalk small insects on bark or flowers. Adults have a large thorax and abdomen that tapers, and often a beaklike mouth. Most are 1/8 inch long or less. Over 700 species in North America.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Ichneumonidae Photo: Gerald J. Lenhard, www.insectimages.org	Ichneumonid wasps Learn more	Parasitoid	Larvae or pupae of most types of insects are attacked by species in this family. Common hosts include beetles, caterpillars, and wasps. Adults are usually slender with a long ovipositor. Over 3,100 species in North America.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Nabidae	Damsel bugs Learn more	Predator	These bugs prey on aphids, leafhoppers, mites, caterpillars, and other insects. Most often yellowish, gray or dull brown, they are a little over ¼ inch long. Slender insects with an elongated head and long antennae. Nymphs sometimes look like ants.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
Nymph Adult	Orius insidiosus Photo: Dept. of Entomology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln cropwatch.unl.edu	Minute pirate bugs Learn more	Predator	This distinctive looking predator about 1/8 inch long feeds on aphids, thrips, mites, psyllids, and insect eggs. The insidiosus species occurs in the Eastern United States, and another species, tristicolor, is common in the Western United States. These insects are abundant in many habitats. Adults are oval, black with white markings and a triangular head. Nymphs are slightly pear-shaped and reddish brown or yellowish. They were commonly collected in our trials from mid-June on.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Pentatomidae Photo: Susan Ellis, www.insectimages.org	Stink bugs Learn more	Predator	Most species are plant-feeding, but some (genus Perillus and Podisus) are predators that have tubular mouthparts that can point forward. Oval or shield-shaped, often brownish, usually less than ½ inch long. Nymphs are rounder than adults and have underdeveloped wings.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Plagiognathus politus Photo: Cedar Creek Natural History Area	Plant bug	Predator	This species has tubular mouthparts that can point forward. Oval shaped, brown, ¼ inch long. Wings turn downward and are clear at the end. This species is a predator on leaf beetles.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Salticidae Photo: Judy Sedbrook, www.colostate.edu	Jumping spiders Learn more	Predator	These spiders are day active hunters in plants or on the ground. They do not make a web, and instead stalk and pounce on prey. They have a distinctive eye pattern with a front row of four eyes and two pairs behind the front row in a perpendicular line. About 300 species in North America.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Staphylinidae	Rove beetles	Predator	Most are predaceous and live in litter as adults and larvae. Some larvae are parasitic. Prey includes insect eggs, larvae and pupae, as well as small soft-bodied insects such as aphids. Adults are often brown or black with soft wing covers that do not extend over their entire abdomen. Larvae are long and thin with a large head. About 3,100 species in North America.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Syrphidae Photo: Susan Elli, www.insectimages.org	Syrphid flies, flower flies, hover flies Learn more	Predator	Most adults eat pollen and nectar. Some larvae feed on fungi, but many are predators. Adults often have black and yellow bands on the abdomen, often hover around flowers, and look like bees (but do not sting). Larvae primarily feed on aphids and other soft-bodied insects. Larvae usually have an opaque skin internal organs visible, and are patterned and colored in various ways, but usually green to dark brownish. About 1,000 species in North America.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Tachinidae Photo: H. Gross, www.insectimages.org	Tachinid flies Learn more	Parasitoid	Hosts include immature beetles, butterflies, and moths. Adults are often dark, robust, hairy flies that look like houseflies but with stout bristles at the tip of their abdomen.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Thomisidae Photo: David Keith, Unv of Neb., Entomology	Crab spiders Learn more	Predator	Crab spiders stalk and capture insects resting on surfaces or walking. They do not spin webs. The front two pairs of legs are enlarged and extend to the side of their body, giving them a crablike appearance. They have small eyes in two slightly curved rows, and the middle four eyes make a square. Over 200 species in North America.
	Scientific name	Common name	Type of natural enemy	Description and pests attacked
	Vespidae polistes	Hornets, paper wasps, yellowjackets	Predator	Adults often eat caterpillars, but feed their larvae on a variety of insects, including beetles, flies, true bugs, and other wasps. Some insects in the family Vespidae are pests to humans, but several native species in the genus Polistes are less likely to attack people. Adults are black with yellow markings, and they fold their wings lengthwise when at rest. In areas with severe winters, colonies do not overwinter, but in milder areas a colony may grow for several years.