Each vial contains hundreds of these creatures. On release, they home in on their unsuspecting prey and plant eggs that, upon hatching, eat their victims from the inside. A scene out of "Aliens"? Not really.

For Louisiana horticulturists (Layman's term: Plant specialists), it's biological warfare of microscopic proportions, and their draftees are of the winged, six-legged variety.

Imported from facilities in California and Puerto Rico by the thousands, these gnat-sized wasps are being used to combat a threat that's recurred not only in Louisiana, but in neighbors Florida and California: the Maconellicoccus hirsutus.

More commonly known as the hibiscus mealybug, it normally occurs in tropical areas such as Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Australia, the bugs feeds on 10,000 kinds of plants, including agricultural crops, which has gotten agricultural officials concerned regarding the Louisiana infestation. Recent tests in the Jefferson Parish area have revealed almost 40 plant infestations in Metairie, Kenner and Marrero.

"They can attack sugarcane. They can attack citrus crops. They can do a lot of damage," said state Agriculture Commissioner Bob Odom, who was present when he and a team of Louisiana horticulturists released two vials of the wasps in the the Metairie home of Jan Gourgues. The person who first noticed the infestation when her hibiscus plant failed to bloom a few months ago and the leaves began to curl up and fall prematurely; and she noticed a white lumpy white coating on the stems and branches - clear signs of the bug's presence.

The wasps, which lack stingers, are relatively harmless to humans, hence their choice for the current bug problem. Odom has advised residents in the areas where the wasps are being released not to use pesticides for the time, which will occur on a weekly basis for several weeks.

Some of you guys out there may see a resemblance between this and the way farmers have traditionally used ladybugs to get rid aphid infestations.