Coevolutionary arms race versus host defense chase in a tropical herbivore-plant system.

ABSTRACT: Coevolutionary models suggest that herbivores drive diversification and community composition in plants. For herbivores, many questions remain regarding how plant defenses shape host choice and community structure. We addressed these questions using the tree genus Inga and its lepidopteran herbivores in the Amazon. We constructed phylogenies for both plants and insects and quantified host associations and plant defenses. We found that similarity in herbivore assemblages between Inga species was correlated with similarity in defenses. There was no correlation with phylogeny, a result consistent with our observations that the expression of defenses in Inga is independent of phylogeny. Furthermore, host defensive traits explained 40% of herbivore community similarity. Ana

SUBMITTER: Endara MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5594685 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature