Environmental Entomology (1986) 15, 1184-1188

James D. Smith and Richard A. Goyer (1986)
Population fluctuations and causes of mortality for the forest tent caterpillar, Malacosoma disstria (Lepidoptera: Lasiocampidae), on three different sites in southern Louisiana
Environmental Entomology 15 (6), 1184-1188
Abstract: Population fluctuations of forest tent caterpillar, Malacosoma disstria Hübner, were investigated at two permanently flooded plots and one plot that was dry during summers of 1980-83 in southern Louisiana. Tupelo gum, Nyssa aquatica L., and swamp tupelo, Nyssa sylvatica var. biflora (Walt.) Sarg., made up 63% of the dry plot forest stand and 93.8 and 87% of the two wet plots. Egg parasitism ranged from 8.8 to 29.7%, and egg infertility varied from 1.2 to 6.7%. An analysis of egg mortality factors demonstrated no density-dependent relationships or significant plot differences. Pupal parasitism by Sarcophaga houghi Aldrich varied from 18 to 78% during 1981-82. Lower rates of parasitism were found on wet plots due, presumably, to drowning of parasite puparia. Populations of forest tent caterpillar at the dry plot were reduced by apparent density-dependent parasitism by S. houghi. We found that a generation survival rate of 0.1% resulted in population decline and that survival > 0.7% resulted in a population increase the following season. Starvation may have been a major factor in population fluctuation at wet plots.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
population dynamics/ epidemiology
biocontrol - natural enemies
Research topic(s) for beneficials or antagonists:
surveys/distribution/isolation

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Malacosoma disstria	Nyssa (genus)	U.S.A. (mid S)
Sarcophaga houghi (parasitoid)	Malacosoma disstria		U.S.A. (mid S)