Abstract

Wasps that belong to the genus Ophelimus develop galls on Eucalyptus spp., and E. globulus is considered among the most susceptible species. In 2003, a new species of Ophelimus was detected in Chile. This species forms galls on E. globulus and E. camaldulensis, and it was recently considered as Ophelimus migdanorum nov sp. The present study was carried out 16 yr after its detection and it was aimed to determine the presence of Ophelimus in plantations of E. globulus located in Maule, Biobio and La Araucania Regions, which represent 76% of the area covered with this species in the country. Between August and September 2017, a total of 165 sampling forest farms were established in stands of E. globulus, located in these regions of the country. In each farm, twigs were collected that represented formation of galls and maintained in laboratory conditions until the emergence of adults. These were identified according to their external morphological characteristics. The presence of O. migdanorum and Closterocerus chamaeleon was determined. Both species emerged together in all the regions considered in the study, 92.1% and 46.7% of the evaluated forest farms, respectively. Then Ophelimus migdanorum is widely distributed in Maule, Biobio and La Araucania Regions, in Chile.