What is Parasitoid wasp?
[[File:Ichneumon_wasp_(Megarhyssa_macrurus_lunato)_(7686081848).jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|''[[Megarhyssa macrurus]]'' ([[Ichneumonidae]]), a [[parasitoid]], ovipositing into its host ''through the wood of a tree''. The body of a female is c. {{convert|2|inch|mm|sigfig=1}} long, with an ovipositor c. {{convert|4|inch|mm}} long.]] [[File:Aleiodes indiscretus wasp parasitizing gypsy moth caterpillar.jpg|thumb|right|230px|Braconid wasp ''Aleiodes indiscretus'' laying eggs in a caterpillar]] [[File:Braconid parasitoid wasp Apanteles sp eggs & Lime Butterfly (Papilio demoleus) cat W IMG 2862.jpg|230px|thumb|[[Braconid]] parasitoid wasp ''Apanteles'' cocoons on a caterpillar ]] By far the greater number of [[wasps]] (over 500,000 [[species]] in the [[superfamily]] Chalcidoidea alone) are a special type of [[parasite]].<ref>Heraty, John M. and others 2013. A phylogenetic analysis of the megadiverse Chalcidoidea (Hymenoptera). ''Cladistics'' '''29''' (5): 466–542. [https://doi.org/10.1111/cla.12006]</ref> They are [[parasitoid]]s which lay their eggs in or on the bodies of other insect species (usually the [[larvae]] such as [[caterpillars]]).<ref>Piper, Ross 2007. ''Extraordinary animals: an encyclopedia of curious and unusual animals''. Greenwood Press.</ref> Different species specialise in hosts from different insect orders, most often [[Lepidoptera]], though some select [[beetles]], [[flies]], or [[bugs]]; the spider wasps (Pompilidae) exclusively attack [[spiders]]. Almost every insect [[Pest (biology)|pest]] species has at least one wasp species that preys upon it or parasitizes it. This makes wasps critically important in the natural control of pest numbers ([[biocontrol]]). Parasitic wasps are increasingly used in agricultural pest control as they themselves do little or no damage to [[crops]]. Farmers buy these parasitic wasps for insect control in their fields. With most species, the adult parasitic wasps themselves do not get any [[nutrients]] from their prey. Much like [[bees]], [[butterfly|butterflies]],