| ABSTRACT Sessile and host-specific herbivores, such as gall-inducing insects, are usually patchily distributed within the populations of their host plants, and it has been suggested that both inter- and intra-plant variation affect gall abundance, distribution and survivorship. Variation in plant traits, such as size and architecture, has been previously demonstrated as a determinant of gall distribution. We examined the influence of architectural complexity of the tropical plant Galianthe brasiliensis (Rubiaceae) on the abundance of the stem-galler Lopesia sp. (Diptera, Cecidomyiidae) along an elevation gradient where both insect and plant were distributed. A total of 120 plants were sampled along the gradient and more than 580 galls were counted, while... |
