G. it. Ent., 10 (51): 175-204
October 2003
Feeding habits of adult Cerambycidae (Coleoptera)
and other insects from Argentina
by
OSVALDO R. DI IORIO
Abstract - A total of 121 records of food plants for adults of 84 species of Cerambycidae from Argentina are presented: 105 are new records, 10 records from literature have been verified and 6 are taken from literature only. The sources of food are floral nectar and/or pollen, ripe fruits (with succulent mesocarpium or aril seeds, and dry fruits such as the cariopses of Poaceae), sap and bark. Numbers of species and specimens of Cerambycidae per each kind of food, the species which the different food categories may have in common, and floral visitors to each plant family and species are given and discussed. The floral biology of Clematis montevidensis (Ranunculaceae) is described in detail. The similarity of the floral morphology of this with that of the Asteraceae and other plant families is discussed from the point of view of visitors and the floral syndromes of pollination. Advanced cantharophily, as floral syndrome, could not be characterized for the Cerambycidae, since the flowers they visit with other Coleoptera are also visited by flies and wasps. Displacement and flight ability, and the time spent on flowers by adult Cerambycidae are compared with those of flies and wasps. Cryptic and nocturnal species of Cerambycidae as flower visitors feeding on nectar are reported for the first time. Species attracted to the different types of food in the southern and northern hemispheres are compared at subfamily level.
