Apertochrysa smitzi (Navás, 1914) (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae), a novel chrysopid biocontrol agent for Pakistan

Biological control is a key component of Integrated Pest Management, however, the use of green lacewings as a biocontrol agent has not received much attention in Pakistan, although Chrysoperla carnea, a generalist predator against a variety of soft-sucking pests, has received much attention in Pakistan. Predatory insects always come out on top when it comes to biological pest control. In addition to minimizing losses caused by pests, applying biocontrol agents helps reduce the ecosystem from being affected by excessive chemical use. The present study proposes a new combination and confirms the newly recorded potential predatory species of green lacewings, Apertochrysa smitzi (Navás, 1914) comb. nov., found in Pakistan, belongs to the Apertochrysa venosa group based on male genitalia having gonocristae, which is only present in the A. venosa group. The diagnostic features of adult, as well as the photographs of dorsal habitus and genitalia, both male and female wings, and the complete life stages of A. smitzi are provided. We reared the larvae and adults of A. smitzi on the larval and nymphal stages of Sitotroga cerealella (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) and Pyrilla perpusilla (Hemiptera: Lophopidae), respectively, under controlled conditions. Apertochrysa smitzi is active most of the year and collected from sugarcane, wheat, and cotton crops from February to March, September and October. Both the larval stages and adults of A. smitzi were reared and released as a pest management tactic against various harmful sucking sugarcane insects for the first time in the Sindh province of Pakistan.