Xanthopimpla punctata

Xanthopimpla punctata
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Clade: Pancrustacea
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Ichneumonidae
Genus: Xanthopimpla
Species:
X. punctata
Binomial name
Xanthopimpla punctata
(Fabricius, 1781)

Xanthopimpla punctata, also known as the yellow ichneumon wasp, is a brightly yellow-colored ichneumonid wasp of subfamily Pimplinae.

Xanthopimpla species are pupal parasitoids of lepidopterous stem boring agricultural pests of cereals, sugar cane, and other crops. X. punctata has also been recorded to parasitise pests of banana plants.

Description

X. punctata displays a lemon-yellow colouration and a black ocellar area, with black spots over various areas of its body: 3 black spots across its mesoscutum, black around the bases of its hind tibiae, and a pair of black spots on each tergite. Females are usually 10-12mm in length and males are significantly smaller.

Prey

Hosts include Lepidopteran cereal stem borer species; such as Haritalodes derogata, Chilo suppressalis, Chilo sacchariphagus, Parnara guttata, and Naranga aenescens. Additionally, X. punctata has been recorded to parasitise Manatha albipes, a banana pest bagworm caterpillar.

Distribution

It has been recorded in many countries in Asia. It has been introduced to North America, though it is considered non invasive.

References

  1. ↑ "Yellow Ichneumon Wasp (Female)". Project Noah.
  2. 1 2 3 4 POORANI, Janakiraman; THANIGAIRAJ, Ramalingam (September 2025). "Report of Xanthopimpla punctata (Fabricius) as a pupal parasitoid of banana bagworm, Manatha albipes Moore (Lepidoptera: Psychidae) from South India - Specimen Micropublications". specimenpub.org. doi:10.56222/28166531.2025.48. Retrieved 2026-08-09.
  3. ↑ Dass, Angeline David; Ghani, Idris Abd. (2013-11-27). "Description of five species of Xanthopimpla Saussure 1892 (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae: Pimplinae) from Malaysia". AIP Conference Proceedings. 1571 (1): 349–354. doi:10.1063/1.4858681. ISSN 0094-243X.
  4. ↑ "GENUS XANTHOPIMPLA SAUSSURE, 1892 (ICHNEUMONIDAE: PIMPLINAE) FROM POTHWAR REGION (PUNJAB) OF PAKISTAN". The Journal of Animal and Plant Sciences. 30 (3). Pakistan Agricultural Scientists Forum: 716. 2020-03-25. doi:10.36899/japs.2020.3.0084. ISSN 1018-7081.
  5. ↑ Watanabe, Kyohei; Matsumoto, Rikio (2021-09-01). "Revision of the genus Xanthopimpla Saussure, 1892 (Hymenoptera, Ichneumonidae, Pimplinae) from Japan". Deutsche Entomologische Zeitschrift. 68 (2): 269–297. doi:10.3897/dez.68.69768. ISSN 1860-1324.
  6. ↑ "Xanthopimpla punctata". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2026-08-11.