Neotropical Entomology (2003) 32, 427-431

Anderson M. Holtz, Hamilton G. De Oliveira, Angelo Pallini, Madelaine Venzon, José C. Zanuncio, Claudinei L. Oliveira, Jeanne S. Marinho and Maria Da C. Rosado (2003)
Desempenho de Thyrinteina arnobia Stoll (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) em Eucalipto e Goiaba: o Hospedeiro Nativo Não é um Bom Hospedeiro?
[Performance of Thyrinteina arnobia Stoll (Lepidoptera: Geometridae) on eucalyptus and on guava: Is the native host a good host?]
Neotropical Entomology 32 (3), 427-431
Abstract: Plants can develop mechanisms of defense that reduces the effects of herbivore attacks. In response, the herbivores evolve to breaking the defense mechanisms of plants. Herbivores may also escape from the plant defense system by migrating to other host whose defense is not effective against them. In Brazil, outbreaks of the defoliator caterpillar Thyrinteina arnobia Stoll in Eucalyptus sp. are frequently observed. However, the native host of this insect is guava, Psidium guajava where outbreaks are not registered. The absence of outbreaks in P. guajava may be related to the development of defense mechanisms in that specie of Myrtaceae, which has apparently not yet occurred on eucalyptus. Here we investigated the performance. of T. arnobia reared on its origin host plant, in comparison with those reared on its exotic host, Eucalyptus sp. The intrinsic growth rate of T. arnobia was higher on eucalyptus than on P. guajava. It is possible that the defense mechanism on guava plants acts as a chemical barrier, probably reducing the digestibility of the insect, which could affect the development of the current population and the next generations.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
(original language: Portuguese)
Full text of article
Database assignments for author(s): José Cola Zanuncio

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
resistance/tolerance/defence of host
general biology - morphology - evolution

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Thyrinteina arnobia	Guava (Psidium)
	Thyrinteina arnobia	Eucalypt (Eucalyptus)