There are very few studies that have investigated host-specificity among tropical herbivorous insects. Indeed, most of the trophic interactions of herbivorous insects in Southeast Asian tropical rainforests remain unknown, and whether polyphagous feeding is common in the herbivores of this ecosystem has not been determined. The present study employed DNA bar coding to reveal the trophic associations of adult leaf-chewing chrysomelid beetles in a Bornean rainforest. Plant material ingested by the adults was retrieved from the bodies of the insects, and a portion of the chloroplast rbcL sequence was then amplified from this material. The plants were identified at the family level using an existing reference database of chloroplast DNA. Our DNA-based diet analysis of eleven chrysomelid species successfully identified their host plant families and indicated that five beetle species fed on more than two families within the angiosperms, and four species fed on several families of gymnosperms and/or ferns together with multiple angiosperm families. These findings suggest that generalist chrysomelid beetles associated with ecologically and taxonomically distant plants constitute a part of the plant-insect network of the Bornean rainforest.

The extent of tropical forest has been declining, due to over-exploitation and illegal logging activities. Large quantities of unlawfully extracted timber and other wood products have been exported, mainly to developed countries. As part of the export monitoring effort, we have developed methods for extracting and analyzing DNA from wood products, such as veneers and sawn timbers made from dipterocarps, in order to identify the species from which they originated. We have also developed a chloroplast DNA database for classifying Shorea species, which are both ecologically and commercially important canopy tree species in the forests of Southeast Asia. We are able to determine the candidate species of wood samples, based on DNA sequences and anatomical data. The methods for analyzing DNA from dipterocarp wood products may have strong deterrent effects on international trade of illegitimate dipterocarp products. However, the method for analyzing DNA from wood is not perfect for all wood products and need for more improvement, especially for plywood sample. Consequently, there may be benefits for the conservation of tropical forests in Southeast Asia.