Adapted dandelions increase seed dispersal potential when they are attacked by root herbivores

AbstractPlants allow their offspring to escape unfavourable local conditions through seed dispersal. Whether plants use this strategy to escape herbivores is not well understood. Here, we explore how different Taraxacum officinale populations modify seed dispersal in response to root herbivore attack by Melolontha melolontha in the field. Root herbivore attack increases seed dispersal potential through a reduction in seed weight in populations that have evolved under high root herbivore pressure, but not in populations that have evolved under low pressure. This increase in dispersal potential is associated with reduced germination, suggesting that adapted plants trade dispersal for establishment. Analysis of vegetative growth parameters suggests that increased dispersal is not the result of stress flowering. These results suggest that root herbivory selects for genotypes that increase their dispersal ability in response to herbivore attack.

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Adapted dandelions trade dispersal for germination upon root herbivore attack

Proceedings of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rspb.2019.2930 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 287 (1921) ◽

pp. 20192930 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Zoe Bont ◽

Marc Pfander ◽

Christelle A. M. Robert ◽

Meret Huber ◽

Erik H. Poelman ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Seed Dispersal ◽

Growth Parameters ◽

Germination Rate ◽

Dispersal Ability ◽

Dispersal Capacity ◽

Local Conditions ◽

Melolontha Melolontha ◽

Herbivore Attack ◽

Dispersal Potential ◽

Root Herbivore

A plant's offspring may escape unfavourable local conditions through seed dispersal. Whether plants use this strategy to escape insect herbivores is not well understood. Here, we explore how different dandelion ( Taraxacum officinale agg.) populations, including diploid outcrossers and triploid apomicts, modify seed dispersal in response to root herbivore attack by their main root-feeding natural enemy, the larvae of the common cockchafer Melolontha melolontha. In a manipulative field experiment, root herbivore attack increased seed dispersal potential through a reduction in seed weight in populations that evolved under high root herbivore pressure, but not in populations that evolved under low pressure. This increase in dispersal potential was independent of plant cytotype, but associated with a reduction in germination rate, suggesting that adapted dandelions trade dispersal for establishment upon attack by root herbivores. Analysis of vegetative growth parameters suggested that the increased dispersal capacity was not the result of stress flowering. In summary, these results suggest that root herbivory selects for an induced increase in dispersal ability in response to herbivore attack. Induced seed dispersal may be a strategy that allows adapted plants to escape from herbivores.

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Impact of Seasonal and Temperature-Dependent Variation in Root Defense Metabolites on Herbivore Preference in Taraxacum officinale

Journal of Chemical Ecology ◽

10.1007/s10886-019-01126-9 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 46 (1) ◽

pp. 63-75 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Wei Huang ◽

Zoe Bont ◽

Maxime R. Hervé ◽

Christelle A. M. Robert ◽

Matthias Erb

Keyword(s):

Abiotic Factors ◽

Taraxacum Officinale ◽

Seasonal Fluctuations ◽

Temperature Dependent ◽

Damage Potential ◽

Melolontha Melolontha ◽

Controlled Conditions ◽

Herbivore Attack ◽

Herbivore Preference ◽

Root Herbivore

AbstractPlants 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 factors and damage potential by Melolontha melolontha, a major natural enemy of T. officinale. We then explored the causality and consequences of these relationships under controlled conditions. The concentration of the defensive sesquiterpene lactone taraxinic acid β-D glucopyranosyl ester (TA-G) varied substantially over the year and was most strongly correlated to mean monthly temperature. Both temperature and TA-G levels were correlated with annual fluctuations in potential M. melolontha damage. Under controlled conditions, plants grown under high temperature produced more TA-G and were less attractive for M. melolontha. However, temperature-dependent M. melolontha feeding preferences were not significantly altered in TA-G deficient transgenic lines. Our results suggest that fluctuations in temperature leads to variation in the production of a root defensive metabolites that co-varies with expected attack of a major root herbivore. Temperature-dependent herbivore preference, however, is likely to be modulated by other phenotypic alterations.

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Seed dispersal potential of Asian elephants

Acta Oecologica ◽

10.1016/j.actao.2016.10.005 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 77 ◽

pp. 144-151 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Franziska K. Harich ◽

Anna C. Treydte ◽

Joseph O. Ogutu ◽

John E. Roberts ◽

Chution Savini ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Seed Dispersal ◽

Asian Elephants ◽

Dispersal Potential

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Herbivory in the epiphyte, Vriesea sanguinolenta Cogn. & Marchal (Bromeliaceae)

Journal of Tropical Ecology ◽

10.1017/s0266467400001747 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 16 (6) ◽

pp. 829-839 ◽

Cited By ~ 25

Author(s):

GEROLD SCHMIDT ◽

GERHARD ZOTZ

Keyword(s):

Leaf Area ◽

Current Knowledge ◽

Insect Herbivores ◽

Vascular Epiphytes ◽

Herbivore Attack ◽

Tropical Flora ◽

Herbivore Pressure

Although herbivory in ground-rooted flora is well documented, current knowledge of the herbivore pressure on vascular epiphytes remains mostly anecdotal. Here, we present the results of a 3-year study on the herbivory in a population of the epiphytic bromeliad Vriesea sanguinolenta. In different years, 26–61% of all epiphytes showed traces of herbivore attack, while up to 4.4% of the entire leaf area of the epiphyte population was consumed annually. The recorded levels of damage to photosynthetic tissue, mostly caused by the larvae of Napaea eucharilla (Riodinidae, Lepidoptera), indicate that vascular epiphytes may be regularly and sometimes even lethally attacked by insect herbivores. The level of damage is comparable to ground-rooted tropical flora, which certainly does not support the prevalent notion of low and negligible levels of herbivory in vascular epiphytes.

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A beta-glucosidase of an insect herbivore determines both toxicity and deterrence of a dandelion defense metabolite

10.1101/2021.03.22.436380 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Meret Huber ◽

Thomas Roder ◽

Sandra Irmisch ◽

Alexander Riedel ◽

Saskia Gablenz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Plant Defense ◽

Feeding Preference ◽

Melolontha Melolontha ◽

Herbivore Interactions ◽

The Common ◽

Common Dandelion ◽

Beta Glucosidase ◽

Insect Gut ◽

Root Herbivore ◽

Plant Herbivore

Gut enzymes can metabolize plant defense metabolites and thereby affect the growth and fitness of insect herbivores. Whether these enzymes also influence herbivore behavior and feeding preference is largely unknown. We studied the metabolization of taraxinic acid β-D-glucopyranosyl ester (TA-G), a sesquiterpene lactone of the common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) that deters its major root herbivore, the common cockchafer larva (Melolontha melolontha). We demonstrate that TA-G is rapidly deglycosylated and conjugated to glutathione in the insect gut. A broad-spectrum M. melolontha β-glucosidase, Mm_bGlc17, is sufficient and necessary for TA-G deglycosylation. Using plants and insect RNA interference, we show that Mm_bGlc17 reduces TA-G toxicity. Furthermore, Mm_bGlc17 is required for the preference of M. melolontha larvae for TA-G deficient plants. Thus, herbivore metabolism modulates both the toxicity and deterrence of a plant defense metabolite. Our work illustrates the multifacteted roles of insect digestive enzymes as mediators of plant-herbivore interactions.

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The Root Herbivore History of the Soil Affects the Productivity of a Grassland Plant Community and Determines Plant Response to New Root Herbivore Attack

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0056524 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. e56524 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Ilja Sonnemann ◽

Stefan Hempel ◽

Maria Beutel ◽

Nicola Hanauer ◽

Stefan Reidinger ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Plant Community ◽

Plant Response ◽

Herbivore Attack ◽

History Of ◽

Root Herbivore

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Crassocephalum crepidioides (redflower ragleaf).

10.1079/cpc.15870.20210099970 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Julissa Rojas-Sandoval ◽

Pedro Acevedo-Rodríguez

Keyword(s):

Seed Dispersal ◽

Wide Distribution ◽

Dispersal Ability ◽

Pioneer Species ◽

Invasive Capacity

Abstract C. crepidiodes is an invasive herb included in the Global Compendium of Weeds and classified as one of the most aggressive weeds occurring in tropical and subtropical regions (Randall, 2012). It is a pioneer species with the capability to produce large amounts of hairy wind-dispersed seeds. However, Chen et al. (2009) suggest that seed dispersal ability is limited. Chen et al. (2009) report that the species has only a moderate invasive capacity and that its wide distribution in China possibly correlates with its cultivation.

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