Abstract: Aims The majority of damage by herbivores occurs during the leaf expansion period, yet the pattern of leaf damage and its influence are poorly known. Our objective is to measure damage throughout leaf expansion to understand the herbivory pattern and the defense strategy for young leaves of Castanopsis fargesii.
Methods We examined variation of leaf area and specific leaf weight (SLW) and measured herbivory frequency and herbivory rate dynamics twice a day during leaf expansion of 35 seedlings of C. fargesii in Tiantong National Forestry Park, eastern China.
Important findings Leaf herbivory frequency and herbivory rate on young leaves in the unfolded stage were significantly higher than in the folded stage (F₁, 32=8.97, p=0.005 4; F₁, 32=12.38, p=0.001 4). Herbivory in the folded stage consisted of a large amount of low proportion herbivory, while leaves in the folded stage mainly had high proportion herbivory. Leaves were intensively grazed at night (t=2.51, p=0.017), which accounted for about 85% of the total leaf herbivory. Young leaves of C. fargesii might follow different strategies in the two expansion stages.