Honeydew Is a Food Source and a Contact Kairomone for .

Many parasitoids need to feed on sugar sources at the adult stage. Although nectar has been proven to be a source of higher nutritional quality compared to honeydew excreted by phloem feeders, the latter can provide the necessary carbohydrates for parasitoids and increase their longevity, fecundity and host searching time. Honeydew is not only a trophic resource for parasitoids, but it can also constitute an olfactory stimulus involved in host searching. In this study, we combined longevity measurements in the laboratory, olfactometry and feeding history inference of individuals caught in the field to test the hypothesis that honeydew excreted by the aphid could serve as a trophic resource for its parasitoid as well as a kairomone used by the parasitoid to discover its hosts. Results indicate that honeydew increased longevity of females if water was provided. Water could be necessary to feed on this food source because of its viscosity and its coating by wax. The presence of honeydew allowed longer stinging events by on . However, no preference towards honeydew was observed, when given the choice. The role of honeydew excreted by on feeding and searching behavior to increase its efficiency as a biological control agent is discussed.