Herbivore Assemblages along an Altitudinal Gradient: Indicators of Climate Change?

I will be presenting the results from a baseline study I conducted as part of an expedition in a subtropical forest in Queensland, where 55 scientists from 14 countries came together to conduct specific projects that would identify arthropods and plant groups that may become suitable indicator species for monitoring long-term changes in the different forest types. This study focused on host-specialist and generalist moth larva (caterpillars) feeding on the understory plants along the elevational gradients of South Queensland’s Lamington National Park. My hypothesis was that species from the lower elevational forests were more likely to migrate up the elevation as the climate warms up. I surveyed the range of related trees species that a particular moth species feeds on along the elevation gradient (300 m to 1100 m above sea level. The average temperature change between the altitudes ranged from 1.5°C to a full range of approximately 7.5°C. The caterpillars were collected by hand from target tree species and bred through to the adult in the field. An estimate of the leaf loss by tree species, altitude and canopy stratum was calculated using image analysis techniques. The host feeding preference of the caterpillars that were collected included species, family, and supra-family specialists. Species specialists showed a mid-altitudinal peak at 700 m a.s.l. and were dominant at all altitude. The overall species richness, and abundance also peaked at the 700 m elevational forest site. The results may have considerable implications in attempting to predict ecological changes which will accompany predicted global warming