Interspecific variation and ontogenetic change in antiherbivore defense in myrmecophytic <i>Macaranga</i> species

Itino, Takao; Itioka, Takao

doi:10.1046/j.1440-1703.2001.00432.x

Cited by 30 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 38 publications

(54 reference statements)

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“…The benefits conferred to partner species in ant‐plant mutualisms can vary both spatially and temporally (Horvitz & Schemske 1990; Alonso 1998; Bronstein 1998; Kersch & Fonseca 2005). Our results and those of others indicate that a full appreciation of these benefits requires a broad perspective in which one considers how plant age (Itino & Itioka 2001; Nomura et al . 2001; Del Val & Dirzo 2003), local environmental conditions (Folgarait & Davidson 1995; Heil et al .…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 72%

“…That young myrmecophytes may have increased chemical defences prior to ant colonization is a logical extension of current plant defence theories (Heil & McKey 2003; but see Boege & Marquis 2005), but evidence supporting this idea remains equivocal (Itino & Itioka 2001; Nomura et al . 2001; Del Val & Dirzo 2003).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

“…2003; Dejean et al . 2004; but see Schupp 1986; Itino & Itioka 2001). The absence of ant defenders during this critical stage of plant growth has led to the suggestion that young plants may be more reliant upon chemical or physical defences than older ones protected by mutualist ant colonies (Heil & McKey 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of plant age, experimental nutrient addition and ant occupancy on herbivory in a neotropical myrmecophyte

Trager

Bruna

2006

Journal of Ecology

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Summary1 Variation in antiherbivore defences among individuals within a plant species may be influenced by intrinsic characteristics of the plant, environmental conditions and the interactions between these factors. 2 We used a long-term field experiment and a laboratory palatability trial to elucidate the effects of plant age, nutrient availability and ant occupancy on herbivore damage sustained by Cordia alliodora, a common neotropical myrmecophyte. 3 Herbivory in this system was influenced by both plant characteristics and environmental conditions, and the relative importance of these variables changed with plant age. 4 Five-year-old plants had a higher frequency of ant occupation and more workers per domatium than 1-year-old plants. 5 Plant age did not significantly affect herbivory in either field studies or laboratory palatability trials conducted with a specialist herbivore. In the field, however, 1-year-old plants tended to have higher levels of herbivory than 5-year-old plants. 6 There was a trend towards lower herbivory in trees that had been fertilized. Additionally, leaves from fertilized trees were significantly less palatable to specialist herbivores. 7 In 1-year-old plants, the abundance of ants in domatia had no effect on herbivory of nearby leaves. In contrast, ant abundance and herbivory were negatively correlated for 5-year-old trees, demonstrating that ants provide effective defence only for older plants. 8 These results suggest that understanding ant-plant-herbivore relationships requires examining how biotic and abiotic factors and their interactions change with plant ontogeny. Although our work focused on one particular ant-plant system, the importance of ontogenetic variation in antiherbivore defence is increasingly recognized as a critical area of study in plant defence theory.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 72%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 95%

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Effects of plant age, experimental nutrient addition and ant occupancy on herbivory in a neotropical myrmecophyte

Trager

Bruna

2006

Journal of Ecology

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“…). The extent of protection provided by ants appears to be a function of plant size, ant species and herbivore behavior (Madden and Young , Itino and Itioka , Trager and Bruna , Llandres et al. ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ontogenetic shifts in a freshwater cleaning symbiosis: consequences for hosts and their symbionts

Thomas

Creed

Skelton

et al. 2016

Ecology

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Animal fitness is influenced by diverse assemblages of internal and external symbionts. These assemblages often change throughout host ontogeny, but the mechanisms that underlie these changes and their consequences for host fitness are seldom revealed. Here we examine a cleaning symbiosis between crayfish and an assemblage of ectosymbiotic branchiobdellidan worms to uncover what mechanisms drive changes in symbiont composition during host ontogeny and the consequences of these changes for both the host and symbionts. In surveys of a North Carolina river, the dominant worm species shifted from Cambarincola philadelphicus to Cambarincola ingens as crayfish (Cambarus bartonii) increased in size. We demonstrate that this shift is a function of host regulation by small crayfish and exclusion by a dominant symbiont on large crayfish. In a controlled lab experiment, small crayfish often removed their symbionts but C. ingens was removed at a higher rate than C. philadelphicus. In contrast, C. ingens had higher survivorship and reproduction than C. philadelphicus on large crayfish. We also measured the effect of each worm species on crayfish growth through ontogeny; neither worm species had an effect on small crayfish but both species had similar positive effects on the growth of large crayfish relative to controls. Evidence from another experiment suggested that intraguild predation by C. ingens caused a decline in C. philadelphicus on large crayfish. We have shown that shifts in partner fitness are a function of host size and that these shifts can involve the succession of symbionts. Further, our results suggest that changes in the outcome of symbioses can remain robust throughout host ontogeny despite interactive mechanisms that lead to shifts in symbiont community structure.

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“…In turn, this may affect the levels of damage suffered by plants as they develop and the selective potential of herbivores. Several studies have reported ontogenetic differences in herbivore preference for particular plant stages (Tahvanainen et al 1985;Jogia et al 1989;Fenner et al 1999) and in herbivore damage (Zagory and Libby 1985;Hanley et al 1995;Fritz et al 2001;Itino and Itioka 2001). Few studies, however, have evaluated whether such differences are promoted by changes in plant quality as food for herbivores, and/or by changes in the risk of predation that herbivores face while feeding on plants at different ontogenetic stages (Kearsley and Whitham 1989;del-Val and Dirzo 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Herbivore attack in Casearia nitida influenced by plant ontogenetic variation in foliage quality and plant architecture

Boege

2004

Oecologia

106

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Traits influencing plant quality as food and/or shelter for herbivores may change during plant ontogeny, and as a consequence, influence the amount of herbivory that plants receive as they develop. In this study, differences in herbivore density and herbivory were evaluated for two ontogenetic stages of the tropical tree Casearia nitida. To assess plant ontogenetic differences in foliage quality as food for herbivores, nutritional and defensive traits were evaluated in saplings and reproductive trees. Predatory arthropods were quantified and the foraging preferences of a parasitoid wasp of the genus Zacremnops were assessed. In addition, survival rates of lepidopteran herbivores (Geometridae) were evaluated experimentally. Herbivore density was three times higher and herbivory was 66% greater in saplings than in reproductive trees. Accordingly, concentrations of total foliar phenolics were higher in reproductive trees than in saplings, whereas leaf toughness, water and nitrogen concentration did not vary between ontogenetic stages. Survival rates of lepidopteran larvae exposed to natural enemies were equivalent in reproductive trees and saplings. Given the greater herbivore density on saplings, equal survival rates implied a greater foraging effort of predators on reproductive trees. Furthermore, observed foraging of parasitoid wasps was restricted to reproductive trees. I propose that herbivore density, and as a consequence, leaf damage were lower in reproductive trees than in saplings due to both traits influencing food quality, and architectural or unmeasured indirect defensive traits influencing foraging preference of natural enemies of herbivores.

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Interspecific variation and ontogenetic change in antiherbivore defense in myrmecophytic Macaranga species

Cited by 30 publications

References 38 publications

Effects of plant age, experimental nutrient addition and ant occupancy on herbivory in a neotropical myrmecophyte

Effects of plant age, experimental nutrient addition and ant occupancy on herbivory in a neotropical myrmecophyte

Ontogenetic shifts in a freshwater cleaning symbiosis: consequences for hosts and their symbionts

Herbivore attack in Casearia nitida influenced by plant ontogenetic variation in foliage quality and plant architecture

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