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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Gainesville, Florida » Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology » Insect Behavior and Biocontrol Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #303086
Title: Pseudautomeris brasiliensis (Lep.: Saturniidae) and Stenoma sp. (Lep.:Elachistidae) feeding on crops of Ctenanthe kummeriana (Marantaceae) in Brazil and an associate parasitoid, Enicospilus tenuigena (Hym.: Ichneumonidae)

Author
item TAVARES, WAGNER - Universidade Federal De Vicosa
item Legaspi, Jesusa
item LIMA, A. - Universidade Federal De Minas Gerais
item SOARES, M. - Universidade Federal Dos Vales Do Jequitinhonha E Mucuri
item PEREIRA, A. I. D. - Instituto Federal Goiano
item ZANUNCIO, JOSE - Universidade Federal De Vicosa

Submitted to: Annals of the Entomological Society of America
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/3/2014
Publication Date: 7/15/2014
Citation: Tavares, W., Legaspi, J.C., Lima, A.R., Soares, M.A., Pereira, A.A., Zanuncio, J.C. 2014. Pseudautomeris brasiliensis (Lep.: Saturniidae) and Stenoma sp. (Lep.:Elachistidae) feeding on crops of Ctenanthe kummeriana (Marantaceae) in Brazil and an associate parasitoid, Enicospilus tenuigena (Hym.: Ichneumonidae). Annals of the Entomological Society of America. 107(2):413-423.

Interpretive Summary: Ctenanthe kummeriana is an ornamental plant, with esthetically appealing color and leaf shape, found in Brazil. Specimens located at the campus of the Federal University of Viçosa in Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, were observed to be defoliated by the moths Pseudautomeris erubescens and Stenoma sp. We studied the biological interactions among the plant and moths over a one-year period on two crops of Ctenanthe kummeriana, by monitoring insect populations and their distributions, plant shelters and feeding damage on the ornamentals. We found that both moths became prevalent after the rainy season and displayed similar distribution on the host plants. Defoliation occurred between March and June. A parasitic wasp, Enicospilus tenuigena, was found to attack over 76% of Pseudautomeris pupae, thereby reducing the moth population.

Technical Abstract: Ctenanthe kummeriana (E. Morren) Eichler (Marantaceae) is a cosmopolitan ornamental plant with esthetically appealing color and leaf shape. Pseudautomeris erubescens Boisduval, 1875 (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) and a non-described species of Stenoma (Lepidoptera: Elachistidae) defoliated this plant in the campus of the Federal University of Viçosa (UFV) in Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, inspiring the study of the association that prevails among these organisms. This could be a rare event, as the association of Lepidoptera with Marantaceae is scarce, with only two reports. The aim of this study was to monitor the caterpillars on two crops of C. kummeriana, one in the “Horto Botânico” (HB) and another in the “Recanto da Cigarra” (RC), during a period of one year, paying particular attention to the shelters and the damage caused; to assess the gregarious nature and the emergence (parasitoid and lepidopterans) and to provide an accurate morphologic diagnosis of a parasitoid. Pseudautomeris erubescens and Stenoma sp. were recorded after the rainy season, exhibiting similar distribution between the two crops (HB and RC) of C. kummeriana. Enicospilus tenuigena Kriechbaumer, 1901 (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) emerged from 76.25% of the P. erubescens pupae. Pseudautomeris erubescens and Stenoma sp. defoliated the C. kummeriana plants between March and June in the UFV campus, while the parasitoid, E. tenuigena, reduced the populations of the first species.