Natural enemies are organisms that kill, decrease the reproductive potential of, or otherwise reduce the numbers of another organism. Natural enemies that limit pests are key components of integrated pest management programs. Important natural enemies of insect and mite pests include predators, parasitoids (parasites), and pathogens.
The UC IPM Natural Enemies Gallery includes natural enemy species commonly found on California farms and in landscapes. Additional species will be added over time.
| Pest name |
Natural enemy |
| Adelgids |
Aphid flies |
| Multicolored Asian lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Twospotted lady beetle (ladybug) |
Aphids
 |
Anystis spp. whirligig mites, predatory mites |
| Aphid flies |
| Aphid midge |
| Aphidius spp., parasitic wasps |
| Ashy gray lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Axion plagiatum lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Bigeyed bugs |
| Brown lacewings |
| Convergent lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Damsel bugs |
| Diaeretiella rapae, parasitic wasp |
| Dustywings |
| Green lacewings |
| Lysiphlebus testaceipes, parasitic wasp |
| Mealybug destroyer |
| Minute pirate bugs |
| Multicolored Asian lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Pink spotted lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Polished lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Sevenspotted lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Soldier beetles |
| Spotless lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Syrphid flies |
| Trioxys pallidus, parasitic wasp |
| Twicestabbed lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Twospotted lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Western blood-red lady beetle (ladybug) |
Beetles
 |
Assassin bugs |
| Calosota elongata, goldspotted oak borer parasitic wasp |
| Damsel bugs |
| Erynniopsis antennata, elm leaf beetle parasitic fly |
| Oomyzus (=Tetrastichus) gallerucae, parasitic wasp |
| Predaceous ground beetles |
| Rough stink bugs |
| Sevenspotted lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Spiders |
| Spined soldier bug |
| Tachinid flies |
| Twospotted stink bug |
Brown garden snail
 |
Decollate snail |
| Predaceous ground beetles |
Bugs (such as lygus, plant, and stink bugs)
 |
Assassin bugs |
| Bigeyed bugs |
| Brown lacewings |
| Damsel bugs |
| Green lacewings |
| Minute pirate bugs |
| Spiders |
| Trichopoda pennipes, parasitic fly |
| Trissolcus species, stink bug parasitic wasps |
Caterpillars
 |
Assassin bugs |
| Bigeyed bugs |
| Brown lacewings |
| Copidosoma spp., parasitic wasps |
| Cotesia (=Apanteles) medicaginis, alfalfa caterpillar parasitic wasp |
| Damsel bugs |
| Goniozus spp., parasitic wasps |
| Green lacewings |
| Habrobracon (=Bracon) cushmani, parasitic wasp |
| Hyposoter exiguae, parasitic wasp |
| Minute pirate bugs |
| Predaceous ground beetles |
| Rough stink bugs |
| Spiders |
| Spined soldier bug |
| Tachinid flies |
| Twospotted stink bug |
| Cockroaches |
Spiders |
| Crickets |
Tachinid flies |
| Earwigs |
Tachinid flies |
| Flies |
Tachinid flies |
| Grasshoppers |
Tachinid flies |
Insect eggs
 |
Anaphes spp., parasitic wasps |
| Bigeyed bugs |
| Brown lacewings |
| Dustywings |
| Minute pirate bugs |
| Pink spotted lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Soldier beetles |
| Trichogramma spp., parasitic wasps |
Leafhoppers
 |
Anagrus spp., parasitic wasps |
| Anystis spp. whirligig mites, predatory mites |
| Brown lacewings |
| Cosmocomoidea (=Gonatocerus) spp., parasitic wasps |
| Green lacewings |
| Spiders |
| Leafminers |
Diglyphus spp., parasitic wasps |
Mealybugs
 |
Acerophagus spp., parasitic wasps |
| Anagyrus spp., parasitic wasps |
| Aphid flies |
| Brown lacewings |
| Dustywings |
| Green lacewings |
| Leptomastix dactylopii, parasitic wasp |
| Mealybug destroyer |
| Sevenspotted lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Syrphid flies |
| Twicestabbed lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Vedalia beetle |
| Millipedes |
Predaceous ground beetles |
Mites
 |
Aeolothrips predatory thrips |
| Anystis spp., whirligig mites, predatory mites |
| Bigeyed bugs |
| Brown lacewings |
| Damsel bugs |
| Dustywings |
| Euseius predatory mites |
| Franklinothrips predatory thrips |
| Minute pirate bugs |
| Mite midges |
| Neoseiulus predatory mites |
| Phytoseiulus predatory mites |
| Pink spotted lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Sixspotted thrips |
| Spider mite destroyer lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Spider mite rove beetle |
| Western predatory mite |
| Powdery mildew |
Fungus-feeding Psyllobora lady beetles (ladybugs) |
Psyllids
 |
Anystis spp. whirligig mites, predatory mites |
| Ashy gray lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Axion plagiatum lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Brown lacewings |
| Dustywings |
| Green lacewings |
| Minute pirate bugs |
| Multicolored Asian lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Psyllaephagus bliteus, parasitic wasp |
| Psyllaephagus pilosus, parasitic wasp |
| Sevenspotted lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Spiders |
| Tamarixia radiata, parasitic wasp |
| Twospotted lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Sawflies |
Assassin bugs |
| Rough stink bugs |
| Spined soldier bug |
| Twospotted stink bug |
Scales
 |
Aphid flies |
| Aphytis aonidiae, parasitic wasps |
| Aphytis lepidosaphes, parasitic wasps |
| Aphytis melinus, parasitic wasp |
| Axion plagiatum lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Brown lacewings |
| Chilocorus bipustulatus lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Chilocorus kuwanae lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Coccophagus lycimnia =C. lecanii, parasitic wasp |
| Comperiella bifasciata, parasitic wasp |
| Cryptochaetum iceryae, cottony cushion scale parasitic fly |
| Dustywings |
| Encarsia perniciosi, parasitic wasp |
| Euseius predatory mites |
| Green lacewings |
| Mealybug destroyer |
| Metaphycus spp., parasitic wasps |
| Multicolored Asian lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Rhyzobius spp. lady beetles (ladybugs) |
| Steelblue lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Twicestabbed lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Vedalia beetle |
Thrips
 |
Aeolothrips predatory thrips |
| Anystis spp. whirligig mites, predatory mites |
| Brown lacewings |
| Ceranisus menes, parasitic wasp |
| Damsel bugs |
| Euseius predatory mites |
| Franklinothrips spp. predatory thrips |
| Green lacewings |
| Minute pirate bugs |
| Neoseiulus spp. predatory mites |
| Thripoctenus javae =Thripobius semiluteus, parasitic wasp |
| Weeds |
Cochineal scales of prickly pear cacti |
| Klamathweed beetle |
| Puncturevine weevils |
| Tamarisk beetles |
Whiteflies
 |
Amitus spiniferus, woolly whitefly parasitic wasp |
| Ashy gray lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Bigeyed bugs |
| Brown lacewings |
| Cales noacki, parasitic wasp |
| Clitostethus arcuatus lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Delphastus spp. lady beetles (ladybugs) |
| Dustywings |
| Encarsia (=Encarsiella) noyesi, parasitic wasp |
| Encarsia formosa, parasitic wasp |
| Encarsia inaron =E. partenopea, parasitic wasp |
| Encarsia pergandiella, parasitic wasp |
| Entedononecremnus krauteri, parasitic wasp |
| Euseius predatory mites |
| Franklinothrips predatory thrips |
| Idioporus affinis, parasitic wasp |
| Minute pirate bugs |
| Sevenspotted lady beetle (ladybug) |
| Spiders |
