The diamondback moth (DBM), Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae), is the most destructive pest of Brassicaceae worldwide and poses particularly acute problems in tropical areas. Chemical control is impaired by multiple-insecticide resistance in this species. Alternative methods are based on biological control by parasitoids, such as Oomyzussokolowskii (Kurdjumov) (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) and Cotesia vestalis (Haliday) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), which are commonly used due to their specificity towards DBM. To help to improve the biocontrol of the moth in the tropics, we studied host-parasitoid relationships between P. xylostella and these two parasitoids under both laboratory and field conditions in Senegal and Benin. In both countries, climatic conditions are favourable for the development of DBM and rainfall does not limit populations of this pest. In Senegal, four parasitoid species are present on DBM larvae: O. sokolowskii, C. vestalis, Apanteles litae, and Brachymeria citrae. In Benin, C. vestalis is largely dominant. In neither of these countries, the moth is sufficiently controlled by natural enemies. Conservation biological control might be combined with the use of companion plants in cabbage crops to reduce DBM populations. Laboratory studies have shown that O. sokolowskii is an efficient larval-pupal parasitoid. In C. vestalis, females detect and recognize their host using cuticular lipids produced by the caterpillar. Studies of molecular markers (isozymes and ISSR) have confirmed high variability among DBM populations around the world, those from Australia and Japan being distinct and very different from any other population. Population structure seems to be influenced by the type of climate (tropical vs. non-tropical).
