Temporal Distribution of Eois Immatures (Lepidoptera, Geometridae) in a Tropical Forest

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Studies of populations on a temporal scale are essential to accessing the real diversity of an area since species may not be distributed equally over time. The temporal distribution of species can be related to climatic conditions, such as temperature and precipitation, which play an important role in biological systems, influencing biotic interactions. Insects may optimise their life-cycles to benefit from suitable environmental conditions, including food availability and escape from predators and parasitoids. The goal of this study is to describe the temporal distribution of Eois Hübner abundance associated with species of Piper and to investigate the role of climate and parasitoid wasps on monthly distributions of immature abundance. The study was carried out in an area of Atlantic Forest in Serra do Japi Biological Reserve (SJ), Jundiaí - SP, Brazil. For 13 months, from June 2015 to July 2016, Eois immatures were sought monthly under all leaves of 24 individuals from ten Piper species and reared until the emergence of adults or parasitoids. A total of 778 immature Eois specimens were sampled, and all abundance peaks were concentrated between March to June. No correlation was found between monthly Eois distribution with precipitation and temperature. Otherwise, the results showed a time-delayed correlation between the rate of parasitism and the abundance of Eois immatures, with the highest rate of parasitism occurring after peak abundance of immatures.