The cerrado biome is rich in caterpillar species although the general
biology and ecology of most tropical species remains unknown. Three ho
st plant genera (Byrsonima, Erythroxylum and Qualea) were examined for
caterpillars in four cerrado sensu stricto areas near Brasilia (DF, B
razil), from 1991 to 1995. Altogether, more than 16 000 host plants we
re sampled and less than 20% of them possessed caterpillars. All the c
aterpillars found were reared under laboratory conditions. We successf
ully reared 137 species of 24 lepidopteran families. The average numbe
r of caterpillar species per host species was 28.3. The faunal similar
ity among plant genera, as well as among study sites, was low, and not
related to the distances between them. The low proportion of host pla
nts with caterpillars and the high incidence of rare species appears t
o be a general pattern for the cerrado. A large proportion (74%) of th
e caterpillar species occurred on only one host plant family. The most
frequent species were either specialists (restricted to one host plan
t genus) or generalists. We provide a brief outline of some taxonomic
problems, some observations on general biology, and temporal and local
patterns of some specific caterpillars species. The methodology used,
which included weekly data collection, in restricted study areas of t
he same habitat, with the same sampling method for recording the cater
pillar species on the same host plant species, can be used as a tool t
o explore biodiversity and to discuss some aspects of the conservation
of cerrado insects.