---

Hi,

I have a question about tachinids.
I'm working on a project about earwigs and I noticed parasitism by tachinid flies. Is it possible that they DONT kill heir host? I found pupae in a sealed box with earwigs... alive!
I observed parasitsm before but with a death earwig. I waited untill the fly became adult to identify it, it appeared to be "Ocytata pallipes".
I dont know yet which species will be responsible for NOT killing the earwigs. But is it possible? any experiences?

Thanks
Rob

---

Parasitoids, by definition should kill their hosts - it seperates them from normal 'parasites' :) However, with your Ocytata, I think the chances are the fly killed one but it just so happens that other (unparasitised) earwigs have come into the same space to live.

---

Well I have a little box containing 1 earwig, suddenly there is a pupae inside and the earwig is still alive...

---

Never mind I found the solution!
It is possible that an earwig survives for several months after emergence of the tachinid. But eventually dies and can't repoduce. (In laboratory)

---

That's true - the host can sometimes survive having half it's body eaten and the rupture in the body wall caused when the parasitoid emerges. However, the parasitoid would have been developing by eating the host's organs starting at parts that it can live without - namely the developing reproductive organs and fat-bodies etc. :)