''Xanthopimpla punctata'', also known as the yellow ichneumon wasp, is a yellow-colored

Ichneumon wasp The Ichneumonidae, also known as the ichneumon wasps, Darwin wasps, or ichneumonids, are a family of parasitoid wasps of the insect order Hymenoptera. They are one of the most diverse groups within the Hymenoptera with roughly 25,000 species cu ...

of subfamily

Pimplinae Pimplinae are a worldwide subfamily of the parasitic wasp family Ichneumonidae.Gavin Broad (1966Identification key to the subfamilies of Ichneumonidae/ref> Pimplinae are parasitoids of Endopterygota, often the pupae of Lepidoptera. Various sp ...

. Xanthopimpla spp. play a beneficial role in agriculture. They are important

parasitoids In evolutionary ecology, a parasitoid is an organism that lives in close association with its host at the host's expense, eventually resulting in the death of the host. Parasitoidism is one of six major evolutionary strategies within parasitis ...

of lepidopterous stem borers of cereals, sugar cane and other crops; they lay their eggs on moth caterpillars that damage crops.

References

Pimplinae {{Ichneumonidae-stub