Preliminary Study Of The Lepidopteran Larval Diversity In Tianjin Mt. Baxian

This study deals with the species component of Lepidopteran larvae and the species community component of their host plants in Mt. Baxian Nature Reserves of Tianjin. The research includes the field investigation, the field observation at fixed time and places, and the captive breeding in the experimental area. Species diversity of Lepidopteran larvae in different inhabits and months in Mt. Baxian Nature Reserves was studied; the abundance of the larvae species was analyzed on a basis of a comparison of the recorded Lepidoptera species with the larvae collected during this study; the Lepidopteran larval dynamic change in different months was investigated; and the biology of Yponomeuta kanaiellus Matsumura was further observed. The main results are as follows:1. Larvae of 120 Lepidopteran species belonging to 25 families were collected, including seven newly recorded families for Mt. Baxian Nature Reserves:Yponomeutidae, Elachistidae, Lyonetiidae, Gracilariidae, Scythrididae, Psychidae and Epipyropidae, and 13 newly recorded species within these families; larvae of 12 butterfly species belonging to four families were also collected.2. The host plants of Lepidopteran larvae include 48 species in 44 genera under 31 families, which constitute the host plant community component.3. The plant community component in the area ranging from Zhandao to Xianguquan was relatively steady and complicated according to the study of the Lepidopteran larval diversity in different habitats.4. The Lepidopteran larval diversity in different months showed that the annual species even index in Mt. Baxian was stable, which was related to the abundance of the dominant species and the uniformity of the species distribution. The larval species and population size reached the highest level in August, which was related to the luxuriance of plants and the suitable temperature and moisture.