Biological control in agriculture is an eco-friendly pest management method. Numerous parasitoid wasps have been utilized as natural enemies and biological control agents. However, due to a shortage of fundamental taxonomic information caused by taxonomic impediments, there are challenges in unveiling and developing hymenopteran biological control agents. Braconidae, the second-largest family in Hymenoptera, comprises approximately 25,000 species described and recorded. All known braconids attack only insect hosts, with many members exhibiting high host specificity. Leveraging their unique biology, many braconid species have been tested in biological control research, and some have been developed as commercial products. To create a synergistic effect between biological control and taxonomic research and to discover effective biological control agents, several collaborative research projects have been conducted. In this presentation, these collaborative research projects will highlight the critical role of bridging taxonomic knowledge and biological control expertise, offering potential solutions for more effective and sustainable pest management practices in agriculture.

Phaedrotoma속은 주로 과실파리과, 혹파리과, 물가파리과, 꽃파리과, 똥파리과, 초파리과의 유충에 기생을 하는 고치벌로 한국에는 12종이 기록되어 있다. 본 조사연구 결과로 Phaedrotoma rugulifera와 Phaedrotoma vermiculifera 2종을 국내 최초로 보고한다. 이들의 표본은 쓸어잡기로 채집되었다. 두 종의 기술과 진단형질도판을 수록한다.

Monochamus saltuarius Gebler are the insect vector of the pine wood nematode (PWN), Bursaphelenchus xylophilus (Steiner & Buhrer) mostly in the mid-northern areas of South Korea. In 2017, we installed sentinel logs to lure efficient parasitic wasps of the vector and to evaluate ecological characteristics of parasitoids in prior to the development of biological control strategy for the PWN transmitting insect vector. As a result of the survey, we found Spathius verustus Chao (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) as a predominant parasitoid with the highest parasitism rate among six species of larval parasitoids. The parasitism rate was higher along the edge (0m of the forest depth) of the survey sites than the inner sides (20m and 40m of the forest depth). Also, the parasitoid showed highest parasitism rate in late-May at one of Gapyeong_sites, where was supposed to be the oldest infected areas. Lastly, the parasitism rate along the trap heights was higher at height of 0m than the 1.8m above the ground.

One species of the genus Coleopius (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: opiinae) are reported in this study. The genus Coleopius is a small braconid group distributed in the Palaearctic and Oriental regions, which has three species in the korea in current. In this study, Coleopioides postpectalis Li and van Achterberg is recognized for the first time in South Korea, which had been recently recorded from China. Descriptions, diagnosis distribution and illustration are provided