In variable environments, sampling information on habitat quality is essential for making adaptive foraging decisions. In insect parasitoids, females foraging for hosts have repeatedly been shown to employ behavioral strategies that are in line with predictions from optimal foraging models. Yet, which cues exactly are employed to sample information on habitat quality, has rarely been investigated. Using the gregarious parasitoid Nasonia vitripennis (Walker) (Hymenoptera: Pteromalidae), we provided females with different cues about hosts to elucidate,...