What eats the cactus moth?

Interactions in native habitat In South America, Cactoblastis cactorum has many natural predators, including ants and New World monkeys. Ants, the moths’ main predators, consume its larvae. New World monkeys dig the larvae and pupae out from the flattened leaf-like stems, or “cladodes”, of the cacti.

Where is the cactus moth invading?

Since its introduction in Nevis and latter in Saint Kitts in 1957 and until 1987-1989, the moth was detected in other areas as far as Florida22, increasing the risk of extinction of native species23. The entire Florida peninsula is now invaded and the moth has spread through the Gulf of Mexico coasts20.

Are cactus moths an invasive species?

The cactus moth has a wingspan of only about an inch, but this invasive insect has the potential to cause largescale agricultural and ecological devastation in Texas, according to the first study of cactus moths in Texas.

How did the cactus moth get to Florida?

The cactus moth, Cactoblastis cactorum Berg (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) arrived in 1989 in the Florida Keys, and this invasive species has become a serious threat to the diversity and abundance of Opuntia cactus in North America (Zimmermann et al. 2001, Stiling 2002).

What’s the problem with an invasive cactus moth?

The problem with invasive species is that natural control agents are often left behind in their country of origin. When this occurs, the invading species is free of ecological restraints to reproduction. This seems to be the case with the cactus moth. Its impact on prickly pear is much worse here than in its native home.

How big is a cactus moth in Texas?

The cactus moth has a wingspan of only about an inch, but this invasive insect has the potential to cause largescale agricultural and ecological devastation in Texas, according to the first study of cactus moths in Texas.

Is the cactus moth worse than the prickly pear?

This seems to be the case with the cactus moth. Its impact on prickly pear is much worse here than in its native home. Entomologists hope that a tiny Argentine wasp, Apanteles opuntiarum, might be enlisted in the struggle to preserve native prickly pear.

How is the cactus moth a biocontrol agent?

It has been introduced in various locations around the globe to provide biological control of invasive cacti species and has proved itself as a successful biocontrol agent in Australia, South Africa and some Caribbean islands. However, from the Caribbean it spread into Florida and has attacked non-target cacti species.