Interactions in Native Habitat
In South America, Cactoblastis cactorum has many natural predators, including ants and New World monkeys. Ants, the moth's main predators, consume its larvae. New World monkeys hollow out the larvae and pupae from the flattened leaf-like stems, or "cladodes", of the cacti. The relationship between Cactoblastis cactorum and Opuntia cactus species is parasitic: the moth feeds on the host cactus. In South America, it feeds on all Opuntia cactus species, with few exceptions (Opuntia sulphurea, Opuntia pampeana, Opuntia quimilo and others). Unlike other Cactoblastis species, Cactoblastis cactorum is not host-specific. Outside of these interactions, much of the moth’s relationship within its South American habitat is unexplored.
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