Alvah Peterson

Bio: Alvah Peterson is an academic researcher. The author has contributed to research in topics: Larva & Lepidoptera genitalia. The author has an hindex of 1, co-authored 1 publications receiving 27 citations.

Traditional Regulation of Edible Caterpillar Exploitation in the Kopa Area of Mpika District in Northern Zambia

Abstract: The Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) of the Bisa people of northern Zambia on species, life cycles and host plants of the caterpillars they exploit for food and for household income generation, and the traditional control of caterpillar harvesting, were investigated through a household survey. The accessed indigenous knowledge on caterpillar biology was validated through a forest survey, caterpillar collections and identifications. Eight species of caterpillars were harvested from the surrounding miombo woodlands. Their life systems and host plants were well understood by members of local communities and this knoweldge was communicated amongst them orally. Popular commercial species were Gynanisa maya Strand and Gonimbrasia zambesina Walker. Over 20 miombo tree species hosted the two species but the mean numbers of the caterpillars on Julbernadia paniculata Troupin were significantly larger than those on other host plants (p < 0.05), indicating that J. paniculata was probably the main host plant of the two species. Traditional regulation of caterpillar harvesting involved: (i) monitoring for edible caterpillar development and abundance and for changes in caterpillar habitats, (ii) protection of host plants and moth eggs against late bush fires, through use of traditional fire technology, and (iii) temporal restriction of edible caterpillar harvesting. The possibility of the Zambian Government promoting caterpillar harvesting as an economic incentive to the Bisa people to conserve both this renewable edible caterpillar natural resource and their environment is discussed.

Diet of some Atlantic Forest birds

Abstract: The diet of many neotropical birds is unknown and these data are essential for the development of conservation strategies. Here we describe the diet of 88 Atlantic Forest bird species, from 326 individuals whose stomach contents were obtained by regurgitation by the use of tartar emetic. Stomach contents were examined in the laboratory under a stereomicroscope. Insects were grouped by Order and other arthropods by Class. Seeds were counted, measured, and identified to family level when possible. The main arthropods in the diet were Coleoptera and Hymenoptera (Formicidae). Seeds ingested were mostly small (< 1.5 mm). New diet studies for neotropical birds are strongly

Digestion of uncrushed leaf tissues by leaf-snipping larval Lepidoptera.

Abstract: Cynodon dactylon (Poaceae) leaf pieces recovered from the frass of final-instar Paratrytone melane larvae (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae) were composed of 14-22 percent crushed cells and 78-86 percent uncrushed cells, yet approximate digestibilities of soluble carbohydrates and protein averaged 78 and 88 percent, respectively. Therefore, nutrients from uncrushed cells were extracted by P. melane. The ability of P. melane and another leaf-snipping lepidopteran, Pseudaletia unipuncta (Noctuidae), to digest the contents of uncrushed bundle sheath and mesophyll cells in C. dactylon was examined with transmission electron microscopy. Organelles and plasma membranes were digested in the foreguts and midguts of both species. These findings suggest that nutrients in uncrushed leaf cells may be extracted through plasmodesmata and cell wall pores after membranes are digested. The generality of leaf-snipping, vis-a-vis leaf crushing, among larval Lepidoptera was assessed by surveying the mandible morphologies of 202 species. In 82 percent of the species surveyed only incisor regions were present. I conclude that leaf-snipping is a common mode of feeding among phytophagous Lepidoptera and that the digestion of cell contents is efficient despite the fact that few of the cells of ingested plant tissues are crushed.

Beyond the Colours: Discovering Hidden Diversity in the Nymphalidae of the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico through DNA Barcoding

Abstract: Background Recent studies have demonstrated the utility of DNA barcoding in the discovery of overlooked species and in the connection of immature and adult stages. In this study, we use DNA barcoding to examine diversity patterns in 121 species of Nymphalidae from the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico. Our results suggest the presence of cryptic species in 8 of these 121 taxa. As well, the reference database derived from the analysis of adult specimens allowed the identification of nymphalid caterpillars providing new details on host plant use. Methodology/Principal Findings We gathered DNA barcode sequences from 857 adult Nymphalidae representing 121 different species. This total includes four species (Adelpha iphiclus, Adelpha malea, Hamadryas iphtime and Taygetis laches) that were initially overlooked because of their close morphological similarity to other species. The barcode results showed that each of the 121 species possessed a diagnostic array of barcode sequences. In addition, there was evidence of cryptic taxa; seven species included two barcode clusters showing more than 2% sequence divergence while one species included three clusters. All 71 nymphalid caterpillars were identified to a species level by their sequence congruence to adult sequences. These caterpillars represented 16 species, and included Hamadryas julitta, an endemic species from the Yucatan Peninsula whose larval stages and host plant (Dalechampia schottii, also endemic to the Yucatan Peninsula) were previously unknown. Conclusions/Significance This investigation has revealed overlooked species in a well-studied museum collection of nymphalid butterflies and suggests that there is a substantial incidence of cryptic species that await full characterization. The utility of barcoding in the rapid identification of caterpillars also promises to accelerate the assembly of information on life histories, a particularly important advance for hyperdiverse tropical insect assemblages.