Chalcidoidea of Iran (Insecta: Hymenoptera)

Description:

Chalcidoidea are one of the most important natural enemies of agricultural and forest pests all over the world. The first step for application of these beneficial insects in biological control and Integrated Pest Management programs in any country is comprehensive knowledge of the fauna of that country, including not only the known species but also their known distribution and hosts, with reference to the original literature that validates the information. This book aims to provide this information for the Iranian fauna of Chalcidoidea. The necessity of such a comprehensive catalogue of the species of Iranian Chalcidoidea is demonstrated by the fact that 797 of the 1,351 species (59%) are not reported from Iran in the on-line Universal Chalcidoidea Database. The book also provides general information on world diversity, morphological recognition, phylogenetics, and host biology for the 20 (of 23 world) families currently known from Iran. This information is intended as an introduction to these beneficial insects for graduate students, applied entomologists and biological control workers who require the information to utilize the species for economic benefit. Comparison of the fauna of Iran with that reported for 15 neighbouring countries also provides broader information on the chalcidoid fauna of the Middle East and Palaearctic Region.