title: Factors influencing supercooling capacity of the koinobiont endoparasitoid Venturia canescens (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae).
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Venturia canescens is a parthenogenetic koinobiont endoparasitoid of several pyralid moth larvae that are major pests of stored products. Low temperatures have been extensively used to control stored-product insects as an alternative to the application of traditional pesticides. However, most studies have focused on the cold hardiness profile of the major stored-product pests. The objective of this study was to investigate how factors such as age, food, host availability and acclimation affect the cold tolerance of V. canescens by determining its supercooling capacity.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Young adults displayed significantly lower supercooling points (SCPs) than older adults, irrespective of the availability of a host. Host availability had a moderate effect on supercooling, whereas food consumption resulted in a significant enhancement of SCP. Acclimation to low temperatures increased the supercooling capacity considerably. Furthermore, an increase in the duration of exposure to acclimation temperature resulted in lower SCPs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Adults of V. canescens displayed an enhanced ability to supercool, however, they appear to be less cold tolerant than their respective hosts. This information would be useful in determining the potential of using V. canescens as a biological agent in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs, taking into consideration the adverse effects of low temperatures on its survival.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Applied Zoology and Parasitology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece; Department of Plant Protection Biology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Alnarp, Sweden.
authors.forename: Stefanos S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Andreadis
authors.forename: Christos G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Spanoudis
authors.forename: Christos G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Athanassiou
authors.forename: Matilda
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Savopoulou-Soultani
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D061046:Biological Control Agents; D003080:Cold Temperature; D007814:Larva / Q000469:parasitology / Q000502:physiology; D009036:Moths / Q000469:parasitology*; D013997:Time Factors; D014863:Wasps / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D061046:Biological Control Agents
keywords: Ephestia kuehniella; Ichneumonidae; acclimation; age; food; supercooling point