Low Red (R) to Far Red (FR) light ratios, a light signal associated with vegetation shade, can prompt intact maize ( Zea mays ) plants to constitutively emit more volatiles when exposed to herbivory-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs). Here we investigated how simulated shading affects priming responses in the context of volatile-mediated plant-plant interactions. Receiver maize plants were exposed to either constitutive volatile...

Climate change may affect plant–herbivore interactions and their associated ecosystem functions. In an experimental evolution approach, we subjected replicated populations of the invasive Ambrosia artemisiifolia to a combination of simulated warming and herbivory by a potential biocontrol beetle. We tracked genomic and metabolomic changes across generations in field populations and assessed plant offspring phenotypes in a comm...

Plants are often exposed to multiple herbivores and densities of these attackers (or corresponding damage intensities) often fluctuate greatly in the field. Plant‐mediated interactions vary among herbivore species and with changing feeding intensity, but little is known about how herbivore identity and density interact to determine plant responses and herbivore fitness. Here, we investigated this question using Triadica sebife...

How climate change will modify belowground tritrophic interactions is poorly understood, despite their importance for agricultural productivity. Here, we manipulated the three major abiotic factors associated with climate change (atmospheric CO 2 , temperature, and soil moisture) and investigated their individual and joint effects on the interaction between maize, the banded cucumber beetle ( Diabrotica balteata ), and the ent...

Plants experience seasonal fluctuations in abiotic and biotic factors such as herbivore attack rates. If and how root defense expression co-varies with seasonal fluctuations in abiotic factors and root herbivore attack rates is not well understood. Here, we evaluated seasonal changes in defensive root latex chemistry of Taraxacum officinale plants in the field and correlated the changes with seasonal fluctuations in abiotic fa...

Although slugs and snails play important roles in terrestrial ecosystems and cause considerable damage on a variety of crop plants, knowledge about the mechanisms of plant immunity to molluscs is limited. We found slugs to be natural herbivores of Arabidopsis thaliana and therefore investigated possible resistance mechanisms of this species against several molluscan herbivores. Treating wounded leaves with the mucus residue (‘...

Ecology Letters (2011) 14 : 55–64 Abstract The most valuable organs of plants are often particularly rich in essential elements, but also very well defended. This creates a dilemma for herbivores that need to maximise energy intake while minimising intoxication. We investigated how the specialist root herbivore Diabrotica virgifera solves this conundrum when feeding on wild and cultivated maize plants. We found that crown root...