FLUCTUATING ASYMMETRY IN COLOPHOSPERMUM MOPANE LEAVES AND OVIPOSITIONPREFERENCE IN AN AFRICAN SILK MOTH IMBRASIA-BELINA

Fluctuating asymmetry in plant metric traits is often correlated with individual plant quality, and may act as a cue to pollinating or phyto phagous insects. If ovipositing insects select hosts on the basis of p erceived host ''quality'', then we may expect a similar correlation be tween oviposition preference and the degree of fluctuating asymmetry. Fluctuating asymmetry in Colophospermum mopane leaf length was compara ble to that found for other plants, but varied widely within individua l trees. Oviposition site choice by an African silk moth Imbrasia beli na showed no significant relationship to fluctuating asymmetry in leaf length of C. mopane, their principal host tree in the area. There was weak evidence, however, of a positive relationship between leaf asymm etry and clutch size. The lack of a significant relationship between o viposition site choice and host tree leaf asymmetry in this study may be due to constraints imposed by I. belina life-history traits and to host tree abundance, rather than a lack of potential benefits from hos t discrimination based on leaf fluctuating asymmetry.