Seasonal and diel variations in the activity of canopy insect herbivores differ between deciduous and evergreen plant species in a tropical dry forest

A study in a Brazilian tropical dry forest (TDF) found that herbivorous insects employ spatial and temporal escape strategies to survive the dry season, showing higher diversity, richness, and abundance on evergreen trees and increased nocturnal activity during the dry period.

• Contrary to the researchers' expectations, herbivore diversity was higher during the dry season, and there was low species overlap between the rainy and dry seasons.
• During the dry season, evergreen trees provided greater richness and abundance of herbivores compared to deciduous trees, suggesting they serve as a spatial refuge for insect populations.
• Insect herbivores exhibited a shift toward nocturnal activity during the dry season to avoid harsh daytime climatic conditions, whereas no such diel differences in abundance were observed during the rainy season.

APA

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (2025). Seasonal and diel variations in the activity of canopy insect herbivores differ between deciduous and evergreen plant species in a tropical dry forest. https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/seasonal-and-diel-variations-in-the-activity-of-canopy-insect-herbivores-differ-between-deciduous-and-evergreen-plant-species-in-a-tropical-dry-forest/

Chicago

Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research. Seasonal and diel variations in the activity of canopy insect herbivores differ between deciduous and evergreen plant species in a tropical dry forest. 2025. https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/seasonal-and-diel-variations-in-the-activity-of-canopy-insect-herbivores-differ-between-deciduous-and-evergreen-plant-species-in-a-tropical-dry-forest/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research |title=Seasonal and diel variations in the activity of canopy insect herbivores differ between deciduous and evergreen plant species in a tropical dry forest |date=12 January 2025 |url=https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/seasonal-and-diel-variations-in-the-activity-of-canopy-insect-herbivores-differ-between-deciduous-and-evergreen-plant-species-in-a-tropical-dry-forest/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{interamericaninstituteforglobalchangeresearch2025seasonal, author = {{Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}}, title = {{Seasonal and diel variations in the activity of canopy insect herbivores differ between deciduous and evergreen plant species in a tropical dry forest}}, institution = {Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research}, year = {2025}, month = jan, url = {https://iai.int/es/pub_acad/seasonal-and-diel-variations-in-the-activity-of-canopy-insect-herbivores-differ-between-deciduous-and-evergreen-plant-species-in-a-tropical-dry-forest/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }