Assessing the influence of biogeographical region and phylogenetic history on chemical defences and herbivory in Quercus species

Moreira, Xoaquín; Abdala‐Roberts, Luis; Galmán, Andrea; Francisco, Marta; Fuente, María de la; Butrón, Ana; Rasmann, Sergio

doi:10.1016/j.phytochem.2018.06.002

Cited by 26 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 67 publications

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“…Although co-evolution of oaks and the gypsy moth is thought to have mainly occurred in the Palearctic region, this phytophagous insect also feeds on many species of Nearctic Quercus (Elkinton and Liebhold 1990). In addition, our work has also showed that this species causes a similar induction of chemical defences in oaks of both regions, suggesting that this species represents a suitable model for studying inducibilidy of defences across both groups of oaks (Moreira et al 2018c).…”

Section: Natural Historysupporting

confidence: 54%

“…We placed a fourth-instar larva on each fully expanded leaf per plant assigned to the infestation treatment. Larvae fed on the plants for 4 days and were then removed and we estimated the percent of total leaf area damaged at the whole-plant level by visually assigning each plant to one of the following categories: 0 = undamaged; 1 = 1-10% damaged; 2 = 11-20% damaged; 3 = 21-30% damaged; 4 = 31-40% damaged; 5 = 41-50% damaged; 6 = 51-60% damaged; 7 = 61-70% damaged; 8 = 71-80% damaged; 9 = 81-90% damaged; 10 = 91-100% damaged (Moreira et al 2018c). To avoid biases in our herbivory estimates, the same person (X.M.)…”

Section: Plant Growth Greenhouse Conditions and Treatmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Inducibility of chemical defences in young oak trees is stronger in species with high elevational ranges

et al. 2018

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Elevational gradients have been highly useful for understanding the underlying forces driving variation in plant traits and plantinsect herbivore interactions. A widely held view from these studies has been that greater herbivory under warmer and less variable climatic conditions found at low elevations has resulted in stronger herbivore selection on plant defences. However, this prediction has been called into question by conflicting empirical evidence, which could be explained by a number of causes such as an incomplete assessment of defensive strategies (ignoring other axes of defence such as defence inducibility) or unaccounted variation in abiotic factors along elevational clines. We conducted a greenhouse experiment testing for inter-specific variation in constitutive leaf chemical defences (phenolic compounds) and their inducibility in response to feeding by gypsy moth larvae (Lymantria dispar L., Lepidoptera) using saplings of 18 oak (Quercus, Fagaceae) species. These species vary in their elevational distribution and together span >2400 m in elevation, therefore allowing us to test for among-species elevational clines in defences based on the elevational range of each species. In addition, we further tested for elevational gradients in the correlated expression of constitutive defences and their inducibility and for associations between defences and climatic factors potentially underlying elevational gradients in defences. Our results showed that oak species with high elevational ranges exhibited a greater inducibility of phenolic compounds (hydrolysable tannins), but this gradient was not accounted for by climatic predictors. In contrast, constitutive defences and the correlated expression of constitutive phenolics and their inducibility did not exhibit elevational clines. Overall, this study builds towards a more robust and integrative understanding of how multivariate plant defensive phenotypes vary along ecological gradients and their underlying abiotic drivers.

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Section: Natural Historysupporting

confidence: 54%

Section: Plant Growth Greenhouse Conditions and Treatmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Inducibility of chemical defences in young oak trees is stronger in species with high elevational ranges

et al. 2018

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“…Our assessment of underlying factors associated with herbivory indicated that leaf defences, specifically condensed tannins, were significantly negatively associated with herbivory, suggesting that increasing amounts of these secondary compounds lowered insect leaf damage (Moreira, Abdala‐Roberts, et al., ; Moreira, Castagneyrol, et al., ). Contrary to predictions, however, holm oak populations on islands had higher (rather than lower) leaf condensed tannins despite significantly lower herbivory at these sites.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…Injection volume was 15 μl. We quantified flavonoids as rutin equivalents, condensed tannins as catechin equivalents and hydrolysable tannins as gallic acid equivalents (Moreira, Abdala‐Roberts, et al., ). We achieved quantification of these phenolic compounds by external calibration using calibration curves at 0.25, 0.5, 1, 2 and 5 μg/ml.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We predicted that oak trees found on islands would have lower levels of insect leaf herbivory and phenolic compounds than their mainland counterparts, and that such patterns would be underlain by differences in climatic factors. Phenolic compounds have been found to confer resistance against insect herbivores in Quercus species (Feeny, ; Moreira, Abdala‐Roberts, et al., ; Moreira, Abdala‐Roberts, et al., ; Roslin & Salminen, ), and were thus considered a suitable proxy for chemical defences in holm oak. Overall, this study contributes to better understand the ecological and evolutionary effects of insularity on plant–herbivore interactions and its underlying drivers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of insularity on insect leaf herbivory and chemical defences in a Mediterranean oak species

Moreira

Castagneyrol

Mata

et al. 2019

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim Research on plant–herbivore interactions has shown that islands typically have low abundances and diversity of herbivores because of barriers to dispersal, isolation and reduced land area. Islands commonly have lower levels of herbivory relative to mainland regions, and, as a consequence, insular plants should exhibit lower levels of defences than their mainland counterparts. Despite these predictions, there are significant gaps in our understanding of insularity effects on plant–herbivore interactions. For instance, most work addressing the effects of insularity on plant–herbivore interactions have compared one or a few islands with a single mainland site. In addition, studies have measured herbivory or plant defences but not both, and the influence of abiotic factors has been neglected. Location Mediterranean Basin (from Spain to Greece). Taxon Quercus ilex L. Methods We conducted a large‐scale study to investigate whether insect leaf herbivory and plant chemical defences in holm oak (Quercus ilex L.) differ between insular versus mainland populations. We further investigated mechanisms by which insularity effects on herbivory may take place by assessing the influence of defences and climatic variables on herbivory. Results We found that insular populations exhibited lower herbivory and higher defences (condensed tannins) than their mainland counterparts. Our analyses, however, suggest that these concomitant patterns of insect herbivory and plant defences were seemingly unrelated as island versus mainland differences in defences did not account for the observed pattern in herbivory. Furthermore, climatic factors did not explain insularity effects on either herbivory or plant defences. Main conclusions Overall, this study provides one of the most robust assessments to date on insularity effects on herbivory and builds towards a better understanding of the ecology and evolution of plant–insect interactions in insular ecosystems.

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Greater phylogenetic distance from native oaks predicts escape from insect leaf herbivores by non‐native oak saplings

Moreira

Vázquez‐González

Encinas-Valero

et al. 2019

American J of Botany

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26Premise of study: It is hypothesized that non-native plant species suffer lower herbivory 27 in novel environments, and that this is determined by their phylogenetical distance to 28 native plants. Although recent work has found support for this prediction, the plant traits 29 responsible for such patterns have been largely overlooked. 30Methods: We conducted a common garden experiment in north-western Spain to test 31 whether oak species (Quercus spp.) not native to this region that are phylogenetically 32 more distantly related to native species exhibit lower insect leaf herbivory. In addition, 33 we also tested plant traits potentially correlated with any such relationship. 34Key results: As expected, phylogenetic distance to native species negatively predicted 35 insect leaf herbivory on non-native oaks. In addition, we found that leaf traits (namely 36 phosphorus and condensed tannins) were significantly associated with herbivory, 37 suggesting that they could be correlates of the effect of phylogenetic distance on leaf 38 herbivory on non-native oak species. 39 Conclusions: This study contributes to a better understanding of how evolutionary 40 relationships (relatedness) between native and non-native plant species determine the 41 latter's success in novel environments via locally shared enemies and encourages more 42 work testing for the contribution of plant traits mediating enemy escape. 43 44 Quercus; temperate biome 46 47 48 5 environments. More broadly, this study contributes to a better understanding of how 101 evolutionary relationships (relatedness) between native and non-native plants determine 102 the latter's success in novel environments via locally shared enemies. 103 104 MATERIAL AND METHODS 105 Field experiment 106 In September 2016, we planted one-year-old plants (purchased from Planfor nursery, 107 Uchacq-et-Parentis, France) of 23 species of the genus Quercus in a common garden in 108 north-western Spain (42°24′20′′ N, 8°38′51′′ W). Four of these species (Quercus robur, 109 Q. petraea, Q. suber, and Q. pyrenaica) were local natives to our field site (in a 200-110km-wide belt) and naturally co-occur in forests of north-western Spain (Fig. 1).

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Assessing the influence of biogeographical region and phylogenetic history on chemical defences and herbivory in Quercus species

Cited by 26 publications

References 67 publications

Inducibility of chemical defences in young oak trees is stronger in species with high elevational ranges

Inducibility of chemical defences in young oak trees is stronger in species with high elevational ranges

Effects of insularity on insect leaf herbivory and chemical defences in a Mediterranean oak species

Greater phylogenetic distance from native oaks predicts escape from insect leaf herbivores by non‐native oak saplings

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