Plant defences limit herbivore population growth by changing predator-prey interactions

Mônica F. Kersch-Becker, André Kessler, Jennifer S. Thaler

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

19 Scopus citations

Abstract

Plant qualityand predators are important factors affecting herbivore population growth, but how they interact to regulate herbivore populations is not well understood. We manipulated jasmonate-induced plant resistance, exposure to the natural predator community and herbivore density to test how these factors jointly and independently affect herbivore population growth. On low-resistance plants, the predator community was diverse and abundant, promoting high predator consumption rates. On high-resistance plants, the predator community was less diverse and abundant, resulting in low predator consumption rate. Plant resistance only directly regulated aphid population growth on predator-excluded plants.When predatorswere present, plant resistance indirectly regulated herbivore population growth by changing the impact of predators on the herbivorous prey. A possible mechanismfor the interaction between plant resistance and predation is that methyl salicylate, a herbivoreinduced plant volatile attractive to predators, was more strongly induced in low-resistance plants. Increased plant resistance reduced predator attractant lures, preventing predators from locating their prey. Low-resistance plants may regulate herbivore populations via predators by providing reliable information on prey availability and increasing the effectiveness of predators.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number20171120
JournalProceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Volume284
Issue number1862
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 13 2017

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
  • General Immunology and Microbiology
  • General Environmental Science
  • General Agricultural and Biological Sciences

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