Parasitoids of the sexual generation of oak gall wasps on the Persian oak (Quercus ‎brantii lindl.) and their species diversity and richness in Iranian northern Zagros ‎forests

Parasitoid wasps are one of the natural enemies and major causes of mortality of Oak gall wasps (Cynipidae). This study was conducted during 2018-2019 in Rabat and Vavan regions (Sardasht –West-Azerbaijan) in order to identify the sexual generation of oak gall wasp’s species on the Persian oak Quercus brantii and their natural enemies. The galls were reared to collect gall wasps and parasitoids in laboratory. Then, Species diversity, evenness and species richness (with Rarefaction method) were calculated with Ecological Mothology 3.0 software. 14 parasitoid wasps belonged to six families of Hymenoptera were identified. Bootaniomyia dorsalis had the highest frequency among collected parasitoid wasps from Rabat and Vavan in two years. The mean of diversity and evenness indexes in 2018 and 2019 in two studied regions showed that the mean of diversity between Rabat and Vavan had a significant difference in both years. The Shannon diversity index in Rabat was more than Vavan. The highest richness of parasitoids was recorded in Rabat in 2019.