Biocontrol introduction
Target pest: Aphids (Hemiptera: Aphididae)
Agent introduced: Aphidius colemani (Hymenoptera: Braconidae)
Imported:
? (accidentally introduced to New Zealand; year of introduction unknown)
Import notes:
Bioforce 2020 (accessed 21 Feb 2026), Nielsen et al. (2025) - Aphidius colemani was accidentally introduced to New Zealand. The year of its introduction is unknown.
Release details:
Bioforce 2020 (accessed 21 Feb 2026), Nielsen et al. (2025) - accidentally introduced to, and established in, New Zealand. However, inundative releases of A. colemani, as the commercially available product "Aphidius", for augmentative biocontrol programmes, are ongoing.
Establishment:
Bioforce 2020 (accessed 21 Feb 2026) - Aphidius colemani is naturally occurring in the northern regions of New Zealand.
Impacts on target:
Bioforce 2020 (accessed 21 Feb 2026) - Aphidius colemani, commercially available in New Zealand under the product name "Aphidius", is used as an augmentative biocontrol agent in Integrated Pest Management programmes. [Augmentative biocontrol involves the mass-rearing and periodic inundative release of natural enemies to manage pest populations on a short-term basis.] It parasitises aphid species such as green peach aphid (Myzus persicae), melon aphid (Aphis gossypii), and cow pea aphid (Aphis craccivora), among others. It is widely recognised for its efficacy in both indoor and outdoor crops like capsicum, cucumber, tomato, chrysanthemum, and various ornamentals.
References
Bioforce (2020). Bioforce Ltd https://www.bioforce.co.nz
Nielsen M-C, Barratt B, Thompson C, Chhagan A, Puketapu A, Horne P, Vereijssen J (2025). Augmentative biological control of invertebrate pests in Australasia: experiences from down under. Biological Control, Vol. 210, November 2025, Article No. 105895 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biocontrol.2025.105895
