Arthropods Associated with Aloe lettyae, an Endangered South African Woodbush Granite Grassland Plant Endemic

• Published in: African entomology Vol. 28; no. 1; pp. 8 - 18
• Main Authors: Kremer-Köhne, S., Harrison, J. duG, Thompson, D.I., Witkowski, E.T.F.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Pretoria Entomological Society of Southern Africa 01.03.2020; Entomological Society of South Africa (ESSA); Entomological Society Of South Africa
• Subjects: Aloe; Aloe cancer; Apis mellifera; Arthropods; Asphodelaceae; Bees; Ecological studies; Endangered plants; Endemic plants; Flowering; Granivory; Grasslands; Herbivory; Insects; Insect–plant interactions; Parasitoids; Pests; Plant reproduction; Pollination; Pollinators; Seed predators; Wasps
• ISSN: 1021-3589; 2224-8854
• DOI: 10.4001/003.028.0008

Investigations into arthropod–aloe associations are focused mostly on aloe pollination and on aloe pests, while little is known about other ecological aspects of these associations. During a broader ecological study on the summer-flowering grassland endemic Aloe lettyae, we documented evidence of two arachnid–aloe interactions and 13 insect taxa occurring on or in parts of A. lettyae plants (n = 1084) in a representative sample of seven A. lettyae populations. Our data suggest that, of the insects observed, only honeybees play a part in A. lettyae pollination, while the other insect species were either visiting or feeding on A. lettyae reproductive plant parts. This paper presents additional records of an herbivorous insect–aloe interaction for the cerambycid beetle Nemotragus helvolus and the drosophilid fly Apenthecia cf. crassiseta, and documents the parasitoid wasp Afrostilba sp. associated with the latter.