Defoliation of a monodominant rain-forest tree by a noctuid moth in Gabon
Fiona Maisels a1 a1 Wildlife Conservation Society, International programme, 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, NY 10460, USA and I.C.A.P.B., Edinburgh University, UK Email: fmaisels@wcs.org
Relatively little is known of the relationships between many lepidopteran species and their larval food plants in tropical rain forests, compared with temperate ecosystems. Species are often known only from the adult form, and the larvae and aspects of ecology, host plant, etc. are unknown (Williams 1971). Many species in the moth genus Achaea sometimes occur at high enough population densities to be defoliators, and several species are associated especially with forest trees: some are agricultural pests on groundnuts and castor oil plant (Ricinus
communis) (Pinhey 1975, M. Shaw, pers.
comm.). Achaea
catocaloides occurs from West Africa through Uganda to East Africa (Seitz 1925) and has been recorded in interactions with ants in Cameroon (Dejean et
al. 1991).
