We tested the host specificity of two South American Pseudacteon phorid flies, P. obtusus Borgmeier and P. borgmeieri Schmitz, on North American colonies of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren, and the tropical fire ant, S. geminata (F.). Sequential host specificity tests conducted in the laboratory indicated that P. obtusus was highly specific to S. invicta. In individual trials, 20 females attacked S. invicta but none attacked S. geminata. Pseudacteon borgmeieri females, in contrast, attacked both Solenopsis species. Six of the eighteen known South American Pseudacteon species have now been tested for host specificity, and 4 of the 6 reveal a high degree of specificity to S. invicta, thus representing good biocontrol candidates. /// Se probó la especificidad de dos moscas phorid Sudamericanas, P. obtusus Borgmeier y P. borgmeieri Schmitz, en colonias norteamericanas de la hormiga roja de fuego importada, Solenopsis invicta Buren, y la hormiga de fuego tropical S. geminata (F.). Pruebas secuenciales de especificidad de hospederos efectuadas en laboratorio indicaron que P. obtusus fue altamente específica a S. invicta. En pruebas individuales, 20 hembras atacaron a S. invicta pero ninguna atacó a S. geminata. En contraste, hembras de Pseudacteon borgmeieri atacaron a las dos especies de Solenopsis. Hasta la fecha se ha probado la especificadad de huespedes en seis de las 18 especies Pseudoacteon sudamericanas conocidas. Cuatro de las seis han mostrado un alto grado de especificidad a S. invicta, por lo cual se les considera buenos candidatos para el control biológico de la hormiga roja de fuego importada.
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