Caterpillar talk: Acoustically mediated territoriality in larval Lepidoptera

Caterpillar talk: acoustically mediated territoriality in larval Lepidoptera.

We provide evidence for conspecific acoustic communication in caterpillars. Larvae of the common hook-tip moth, Drepana arcuata (Drepanoidea), defend silk nest sites from conspecifics by using ritualized acoustic displays. Sounds are produced by drumming the mandibles and scraping the mandibles and specialized anal "oars" against the leaf surface. Staged interactions between a resident and intr...

Caterpillar (lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Feeding on Pasture Grasses in Central Florida

Stargrasses ( Cynodon nlemfuensis Vanderyst var. nlemfuensis ) and bermudagrasses ( C. dactylon (L.) Persoon) are important warm-season forage grasses, with several cultivars developed for conditions found in central and southern Florida. Major insect pests of these grasses include grass loopers ( Mocis spp.) and fall armyworm ( Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith)), which annually may impose ec...

Meagher & Landolt: Floral Lures Attractive To Velvetbean Caterpillar 73 BINARY FLORAL LURE ATTRACTIVE TO VELVETBEAN CATERPILLAR ADULTS (LEPIDOPTERA: NOCTUIDAE)

Evaluation of combinations of flower odor compounds in northern Florida revealed that linalool was synergistic in attractiveness with phenylacetaldehyde (PAA) to the migratory moth velvetbean caterpillar ( Anticarsia gemmatalis Hübner). This noctuid was the most common species collected from traps with a binary lure composed of PAA and linalool, with over 900 males and females collected in Sep ...

Interactions Between Nucleopolyhedroviruses and Polydnaviruses in Larval Lepidoptera

Morphological characterization of Anticarsia gemmatalis M nucleopolyhedrovirus infection in haemocytes from its natural larval host, the velvet bean caterpillar Anticarsia gemmatalis (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae).

For a better understanding of virus x host interactions, transmission electron microscopy was used to characterize the intrahaemocoelic infection of Anticarsia gemmatalis larval haemocytes by A. gemmatalis M nucleopolyhedrovirus (AgMNPV). At 12 h post-infection (h p.i.), we observed nuclear hypertrophy, budded virus assembling, and protrusion towards the cytoplasm, virion envelopment, and accum...