LOCAL : Scientists Will Release Wasps to Combat Ash Whitefly Invasion
Biologists hoping to eradicate the pesky ash whitefly, a tiny insect which has defoliated trees from Sacramento to San Diego, were preparing today for the release Friday of 50 wasps that help control the pest.
The tiny, stingless wasps will be released at the Balboa Sports Center, a fly-infested park in Encino, by scientists from University of California, Riverside. The black-and-gold wasps, which rapidly reproduce, were imported from Israel and Italy.
The wasp is a parasitic insect which reproduces by laying its eggs in the bodies of the ash whitefly. Scientists hope to release 250 more wasps throughout Southern California later this month. The first whiteflies were spotted in California at a Van Nuys fruit stand in August, 1988.
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