Taygete sphecophila (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera; Autostichidae): Redescription of the Adult, Description of the Larva and Pupa, and Impact on Polistes Wasps (Hymenoptera; Vespidae) Nests in the Galapagos Islands

Authors

Bernard Landry, Muséum d'histoire naturelle, C.P. 6434, 1211 Genève 6, SwitzerlandFollow
David Adamski, Department of Entomology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, P.O. Box 37012, MRC 168, Washington, D.C., 20013- 7012, U.S.A.Follow
Patrick Schmitz, Muséum d'histoire naturelle, C.P. 6434, 1211 Genève 6, SwitzerlandFollow
Christine Parent, Behavioural Ecology Research Group, Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British-Colombia V5A 1S6, CanadaFollow
Lazaro Roque-Albelo, Department of Entomology, Charles Darwin Research Station, Casilla 17-01-3891, Quito, Ecuador; Biodiversity and Ecological Processes Research Group, Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, PO Box 915, Cardiff CF10 3TL, United KingdomFollow

Date of this Version

2006

Comments

Published in REVUE SUISSE DE ZOOLOGIE 113 (2): 307-323; juin 2006.

Abstract

Taygete sphecophila (Meyrick) (Lepidoptera; Autostichidae) is reported on the Galapagos Islands. The morphology of the moth, larva, and pupa are described and illustrated in details. Part of the mitochondrial DNA was sequenced and made available on GenBank. The incidence of predation by T. sphecophila on nests of Polistes versicolor Olivier (Hymenoptera; Vespidae) was measured in four different vegetation zones of Floreana and Santa Cruz Islands. The percentages of infested nests varied greatly (from 13.9% to 66.7% on Floreana and from 20.0 to 100% on Santa Cruz) and no clear ecological trends could be ascertained.