Egg laying site selection by a host plant specialist leaf miner moth at two intra-plant levels in the northern Chilean Atacama Desert

Egg laying site selection by a host plant specialist leaf miner moth at two intra-plant levels in the northern Chilean Atacama Desert. The spatial distribution of the immature stages of the leaf miner Angelabella tecomae Vargas & Parra, 2005 was determined at two intra-plant levels (shoot and leaflet) on the shrub Tecoma fulva fulva (Cav.) D. Don (Bignoniaceae) in the Azapa valley, northern Chilean Atacama Desert. An aggregated spatial pattern was detected for all the immature stages along the shoot, with an age dependent relative position: eggs and first instar larvae were clumped at apex; second, third and fourth instar larvae were mostly found at intermediate positions; meanwhile the spinning larva and pupa were clumped at basis. This pattern suggests that the females select new, actively growing leaflets for egg laying. At the leaflet level, the immature stages were found more frequently at underside. Furthermore, survivorship was higher for larvae from underside mines. All these results highlight the importance of an accurate selection of egg laying site in the life history of this highly specialized leaf miner. By contrast, eventual wrong choices in the egg laying site selection may be associated with diminished larval survivorship. The importance of the continuous availability of new plant tissue in this highly human modified arid environment is discussed in relation with the observed patterns.

Prospección de lepidópteros antófagos asociados a Acacia macracantha Willd. (Fabaceae) en el norte de Chile / Survey of anthophagous lepidopteran larvae associated with Acacia macracantha Willd. (Fabaceae) in northern Chile

Se efectuó una prospección de larvas de lepidópteros antófagos asociados a Acacia macracantha Willd. (Fabaceae) en dos valles costeros del norte de Chile: Azapa y Chaca. Fueron registradas ocho especies, distribuidas en ocho géneros y cinco familias. La composición de especies del ensamble fue la misma en las dos localidades. Sin embargo, la abundancia del ensamble y la abundancia por especie fueron diferentes entre los valles.

A survey of anthophagous lepidopteran larvae associated with Acacia macracantha Willd. (Fabaceae) was made in two coastal valleys from northern Chile: Azapa and Chaca. Eight species, distributed in eight genera and five families, were recorded in the areas. Species composition was the same for both localities. However, assemblage abundance and species abundance were different between the valleys.