Microcystins do not provide anti-herbivore defence against mixotrophic flagellates

Ecophysiology of mixotrophic flagellates

A herbivore that manipulates plant defence

Phytopathogens and herbivores induce plant defences. Whereas there is evidence that some pathogens suppress these defences by interfering with signalling pathways involved in the defence, such evidence is scarce for herbivores. We found that the invasive spider mite Tetranychus evansi suppresses the induction of the salicylic acid and jasmonic acid signalling routes involved in induced plant de...

Competition induces allelopathy but suppresses growth and anti-herbivore defence in a chemically rich seaweed.

Many seaweeds and terrestrial plants induce chemical defences in response to herbivory, but whether they induce chemical defences against competitors (allelopathy) remains poorly understood. We evaluated whether two tropical seaweeds induce allelopathy in response to competition with a reef-building coral. We also assessed the effects of competition on seaweed growth and seaweed chemical defenc...

Trade-off among different anti-herbivore defence strategies along an altitudinal gradient

The type and intensity of plant-herbivore interactions are likely to be altered under climate change as a consequence of differential dispersal rates of plants and their herbivores. Here, we studied variation in herbivore damage on Salvia nubicola in the field and compared its growth and defence strategies against herbivores in controlled conditions using seeds from populations along a broad al...

Optimal anti-herbivore defence allocation in Salix polaris: doing it the arctic way?

To determine the optimal anti-herbivore defence allocation of a plant, a modelling approach is inevitable. However, models have too often been detached from field experiments and aloof of ecological knowledge. Here I present the case for combining the two approaches. Two preconditions for a simple model have to be fulfilled: 1. the investigated species should show no inducible resistance, a phe...