Severe drought, leafing phenology, leaf damage and lepidopteran abundance in the canopy of a Bornean aseasonal tropical rain forest

Rainfall fluctuation influences the physiology and leaf production of the trees in tropical rain forests (Burslem et al . 1996, Condit et al . 1995, Reekie & Wayne 1992, Reich 1995), and consequently it may have an impact on the community of herbivores that depend on forest trees for their food resources (Aide 1988, 1992; Basset 1991, Coley 1998, Lowman 1985, van Schaik et al . 1993).