Resource partitioning between Agrotis ipsilon and Spodoptera litura larvae with respect to host plant Nicotiana tabacum

摘要

Resource partitioning is a phenomenon in which two or more species depend on same host plant separate their food obtaining area. This process has been evolved to reduce competition between the involved species so that their survivality will increase. Two species of Noctuidae family Agrotis ipsilon and Spodoptera litura feed upon same plant that is tobacco plant but they separate their portion of feeding. Larvae of two species are collected from field, reared and identified from their adult form. Feeding habit of two species are observed in the field and also in the laboratory by giving them natural food source. From the observation the conclusion that comes that the black cut worm or Agrotis ipsilon feeds on stem of tobacco plant and Spodoptera litura feeds on leaves of tobacco plant. Though the season for Spodoptera litura ranges from mid December to last of January and the season for Agrotis ipsilon is from mid January to mid February. So there is an overlapping time in their season of life cycle. To overcome the competition two species use two different parts of same plant as their food source.