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Gaber H, Ruland F, Jeschke JM, Bernard‐Verdier M. Behavioural changes in the city: The common black garden ant defends aphids more aggressively in urban environments. Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e11639. [PMID: 38962026 PMCID: PMC11221068 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.11639] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2023] [Revised: 04/30/2024] [Accepted: 06/12/2024] [Indexed: 07/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Urbanisation alters biodiversity patterns and threatens to disrupt mutualistic interactions. Aside from pollination, however, little is known about how mutualisms change in cities. Our study aimed to assess how urbanisation affects the protective mutualism between ants and aphids, investigating potential behavioural changes in mutualistic ants and their implications for aphids in urban environments. To do so, we studied the protective mutualism between the pink tansy aphid (Metopeurum fuscoviride) and the black garden ant (Lasius niger) along an urbanisation gradient in Berlin, Germany. In nine locations along this gradient, we measured aphid colony dynamics and proxies for parasitism, quantified the investment of ants in tending aphids and conducted behavioural assays to test the aggressiveness of ant responses to a simulated attack on the aphids. We found that aphid colonies flourished and were equally tended by ants across the urbanisation gradient, with a consistent positive density dependence between aphid and ant numbers. However, ants from more urbanised sites responded more aggressively to the simulated attack. Our findings suggest that this protective mutualism is not only maintained in the city, but that ants might even rely more on it and defend it more aggressively, as other food resources may become scarce and more unpredictable with urbanisation. We thereby provide unique insights into this type of mutualism in the city, further diversifying the growing body of work on mutualisms across urbanisation gradients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah Gaber
- Department of BiologyGhent University (Ugent)GhentBelgium
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin (FUB)BerlinGermany
- Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB)BerlinGermany
- Berlin‐Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB)BerlinGermany
| | - Florian Ruland
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin (FUB)BerlinGermany
- Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB)BerlinGermany
- Berlin‐Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB)BerlinGermany
- West Iceland Nature Research CentreStykkisholmurIceland
| | - Jonathan M. Jeschke
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin (FUB)BerlinGermany
- Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB)BerlinGermany
- Berlin‐Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB)BerlinGermany
| | - Maud Bernard‐Verdier
- Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin (FUB)BerlinGermany
- Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB)BerlinGermany
- Berlin‐Brandenburg Institute of Advanced Biodiversity Research (BBIB)BerlinGermany
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2
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Ballarin CS, Vizentin-Bugoni J, Hachuy-Filho L, Amorim FW. Imprints of indirect interactions on a resource-mediated ant-plant network across different levels of network organization. Oecologia 2024; 204:661-673. [PMID: 38448764 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-024-05522-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 01/30/2024] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
Indirect interactions are pivotal in the evolution of interacting species and the assembly of populations and communities. Nevertheless, despite recently being investigated in plant-animal mutualism at the community level, indirect interactions have not been studied in resource-mediated mutualisms involving plant individuals that share different animal species as partners within a population (i.e., individual-based networks). Here, we analyzed an individual-based ant-plant network to evaluate how resource properties affect indirect interaction patterns and how changes in indirect links leave imprints in the network across multiple levels of network organization. Using complementary analytical approaches, we described the patterns of indirect interactions at the micro-, meso-, and macro-scale. We predicted that plants offering intermediate levels of nectar quantity and quality interact with more diverse ant assemblages. The increased number of ant species would cause a higher potential for indirect interactions in all scales evaluated. We found that nectar properties modified patterns of indirect interactions of plant individuals that share mutualistic partners, leaving imprints across different network scales. To our knowledge, this is the first study tracking indirect interactions in multiple scales within an individual-based network. We show that functional traits of interacting species, such as nectar properties, may lead to changes in indirect interactions, which could be tracked across different levels of the network organization evaluated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caio S Ballarin
- Laboratório de Ecologia da Polinização e Interações, LEPI, Departamento de Biodiversidade e Bioestatística, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho" (UNESP), Rua Prof. Dr. Antonio Celso Wagner Zanin, Botucatu, São Paulo, CEP 18618-689, Brazil.
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Vegetal, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho", Botucatu, São Paulo, CEP 18618-689, Brazil.
| | - Jeferson Vizentin-Bugoni
- Programa de Pós-Graduação Em Biodiversidade Animal, Departamento de Ecologia, Zoologia e Genética, Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Campus Universitário, Capão do Leão, RS, CEP 96010-900, Brasil
| | - Leandro Hachuy-Filho
- Laboratório de Ecologia da Polinização e Interações, LEPI, Departamento de Biodiversidade e Bioestatística, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho" (UNESP), Rua Prof. Dr. Antonio Celso Wagner Zanin, Botucatu, São Paulo, CEP 18618-689, Brazil
- Programa de Pós-Graduação Em Zoologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho", Botucatu, São Paulo, CEP 18618-689, Brazil
| | - Felipe W Amorim
- Laboratório de Ecologia da Polinização e Interações, LEPI, Departamento de Biodiversidade e Bioestatística, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho" (UNESP), Rua Prof. Dr. Antonio Celso Wagner Zanin, Botucatu, São Paulo, CEP 18618-689, Brazil
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Biologia Vegetal, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho", Botucatu, São Paulo, CEP 18618-689, Brazil
- Programa de Pós-Graduação Em Zoologia, Instituto de Biociências, Universidade Estadual Paulista "Júlio de Mesquita Filho", Botucatu, São Paulo, CEP 18618-689, Brazil
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3
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Calixto ES, de Oliveira Pimenta IC, Lange D, Marquis RJ, Torezan-Silingardi HM, Del-Claro K. Emerging Trends in Ant-Pollinator Conflict in Extrafloral Nectary-Bearing Plants. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2024; 13:651. [PMID: 38475497 DOI: 10.3390/plants13050651] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2024] [Revised: 02/23/2024] [Accepted: 02/25/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024]
Abstract
The net outcomes of mutualisms are mediated by the trade-offs between the costs and benefits provided by both partners. Our review proposes the existence of a trade-off in ant protection mutualisms between the benefits generated by the ants' protection against the attack of herbivores and the losses caused by the disruption of pollination processes, which are commonly not quantified. This trade-off has important implications for understanding the evolution of extrafloral nectaries (EFNs), an adaptation that has repeatedly evolved throughout the flowering plant clade. We propose that the outcome of this trade-off is contingent on the specific traits of the organisms involved. We provide evidence that the protective mutualisms between ants and plants mediated by EFNs have optimal protective ant partners, represented by the optimum point of the balance between positive effects on plant protection and negative effects on pollination process. Our review also provides important details about a potential synergism of EFN functionality; that is, these structures can attract ants to protect against herbivores and/or distract them from flowers so as not to disrupt pollination processes. Finally, we argue that generalizations regarding how ants impact plants should be made with caution since ants' effects on plants vary with the identity of the ant species in their overall net outcome.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Denise Lange
- Department of Biology, Federal University of Technology-Parana, Campus Santa Helena, Santa Helena, Curitiba 80230-901, PR, Brazil
| | - Robert J Marquis
- Department of Biology and the Whitney R. Harris World Ecology Center, University of Missouri, St. Louis, MO 63121, USA
| | - Helena Maura Torezan-Silingardi
- Postgraduation Program in Entomology, Department of Biology, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto 14040-900, SP, Brazil
- Institute of Biology, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Uberlândia 38405-240, MG, Brazil
| | - Kleber Del-Claro
- Postgraduation Program in Entomology, Department of Biology, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto 14040-900, SP, Brazil
- Institute of Biology, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Uberlândia 38405-240, MG, Brazil
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4
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Alencar CLDS, Nogueira A, Vicente RE, Coutinho ÍAC. Plant species with larger extrafloral nectaries produce better quality nectar when needed and interact with the best ant partners. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2023; 74:4613-4627. [PMID: 37115640 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erad160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2022] [Accepted: 04/27/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
Few studies have explored the phenotypic plasticity of nectar production on plant attractiveness to ants. Here, we investigate the role of extrafloral nectary (EFN) size on the productivity of extrafloral nectar in three sympatric legume species. We hypothesized that plant species with larger EFNs (i) have higher induced nectar secretion after herbivory events, and (ii) are more likely to interact with more protective (i.e. dominant) ant partners. We target 90 plants of three Chamaecrista species in the field. We estimated EFN size and conducted field experiments to evaluate any differences in nectar traits before and after leaf damage to investigate the phenotypic plasticity of nectar production across species. We conducted multiple censuses of ant species feeding on EFNs over time. Plant species increased nectar descriptors after leaf damage, but in different ways. Supporting our hypothesis, C. duckeana, with the largest EFN size, increased all nectar descriptors, with most intense post-herbivory-induced response, taking its place as the most attractive to ants, including dominant species. EFN size variation was an excellent indicator of nectar productivity across species. The higher control over reward production in plants with larger sized EFNs reflects an induction mechanism under damage that reduces costs and increases the potential benefits of indirect biotic defences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cícero Luanderson da Silva Alencar
- Universidade Federal do Ceará, campus do Pici, Centro de Ciências, Departamento de Biologia, Laboratório de Morfoanatomia Funcional de Plantas, Programa de Pós-graduação em Ecologia e Recursos Naturais, Fortaleza, CE, Brazil
| | - Anselmo Nogueira
- Laboratório de Interações Planta-Animal (LIPA), Centro de Ciências Naturais e Humanas, Universidade Federal do ABC, São Bernardo do Campo, SP, Brazil
| | - Ricardo Eduardo Vicente
- Instituto Nacional da Mata Atlântica, Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Inovações, Santa Teresa, ES, Brazil
| | - Ítalo Antônio Cotta Coutinho
- Universidade Federal do Ceará, campus do Pici, Centro de Ciências, Departamento de Biologia, Laboratório de Morfoanatomia Funcional de Plantas, Programa de Pós-graduação em Ecologia e Recursos Naturais, Fortaleza, CE, Brazil
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5
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Staab M, Pietsch S, Yan H, Blüthgen N, Cheng A, Li Y, Zhang N, Ma K, Liu X. Dear neighbor: Trees with extrafloral nectaries facilitate defense and growth of adjacent undefended trees. Ecology 2023; 104:e4057. [PMID: 37078562 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.4057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2022] [Revised: 03/22/2023] [Accepted: 04/11/2023] [Indexed: 04/21/2023]
Abstract
Plant diversity can increase productivity. One mechanism behind this biodiversity effect is facilitation, which is when one species increases the performance of another species. Plants with extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) establish defense mutualisms with ants. However, whether EFN plants facilitate defense of neighboring non-EFN plants is unknown. Synthesizing data on ants, herbivores, leaf damage, and defense traits from a forest biodiversity experiment, we show that trees growing adjacent to EFN trees had higher ant biomass and species richness and lower caterpillar biomass than conspecific controls without EFN-bearing neighbors. Concurrently, the composition of defense traits in non-EFN trees changed. Thus, when non-EFN trees benefit from lower herbivore loads as a result of ants spilling over from EFN tree neighbors, this may allow relatively reduced resource allocation to defense in the former, potentially explaining the higher growth of those trees. Via this mutualist-mediated facilitation, promoting EFN trees in tropical reforestation could foster carbon capture and multiple other ecosystem functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Staab
- Ecological Networks, Technical University Darmstadt, Darmstadt, Germany
- Nature Conservation and Landscape Ecology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Stefanie Pietsch
- Nature Conservation and Landscape Ecology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
- Field Station Fabrikschleichach, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Haoru Yan
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Nico Blüthgen
- Ecological Networks, Technical University Darmstadt, Darmstadt, Germany
| | - Anpeng Cheng
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yi Li
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Naili Zhang
- College of Forestry, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China
| | - Keping Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- College of Life Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaojuan Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Zhejiang Qianjiangyuan Forest Biodiversity National Observation and Research Station, Beijing, China
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6
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Balduino HDK, Tunes P, Giordano E, Guarnieri M, Machado SR, Nepi M, Guimarães E. To each their own! Nectar plasticity within a flower mediates distinct ecological interactions. AOB PLANTS 2023; 15:plac067. [PMID: 36751365 PMCID: PMC9893873 DOI: 10.1093/aobpla/plac067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2022] [Accepted: 12/29/2022] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Nuptial and extranuptial nectaries are involved in interactions with different animal functional groups. Nectar traits involved in pollination mutualisms are well known. However, we know little about those traits involved in other mutualisms, such as ant-plant interactions, especially when both types of nectaries are in the same plant organ, the flower. Here we investigated if when two types of nectaries are exploited by distinct functional groups of floral visitors, even being within the same plant organ, the nectar secreted presents distinct features that fit animal requirements. We compared nectar secretion dynamics, floral visitors and nectar chemical composition of both nuptial and extranuptial nectaries in natural populations of the liana Amphilophium mansoanum (Bignoniaceae). For that we characterized nectar sugar, amino acid and specialized metabolite composition by high-performance liquid chromatography. Nuptial nectaries were visited by three medium- and large-sized bee species and extranuptial nectaries were visited mainly by ants, but also by cockroaches, wasps and flies. Nuptial and extranuptial nectar differed regarding volume, concentration, milligrams of sugars per flower and secretion dynamics. Nuptial nectar was sucrose-dominated, with high amounts of γ-aminobutyric acid and β-aminobutyric acid and with theophylline-like alkaloid, which were all exclusive of nuptial nectar. Whereas extranuptial nectar was hexose-rich, had a richer and less variable amino acid chemical profile, with high amounts of serine and alanine amino acids and with higher amounts of the specialized metabolite tyramine. The nectar traits from nuptial and extranuptial nectaries differ in energy amount and nutritional value, as well as in neuroactive specialized metabolites. These differences seem to match floral visitors' requirements, since they exclusively consume one of the two nectar types and may be exerting selective pressures on the composition of the respective resources of interest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannelise de Kassia Balduino
- Graduate Course in Plant Biology, São Paulo State University, 18618-689 Botucatu, Brazil
- Laboratory of Ecology and Evolution of Plant-Animal Interactions, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, 18618-689 Botucatu, Brazil
| | - Priscila Tunes
- Laboratory of Ecology and Evolution of Plant-Animal Interactions, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, 18618-689 Botucatu, Brazil
| | - Emanuele Giordano
- Laboratory of Analytical Methods for Chemical Ecology - Plant Reproductive Biology, Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Massimo Guarnieri
- Laboratory of Analytical Methods for Chemical Ecology - Plant Reproductive Biology, Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy
| | - Silvia Rodrigues Machado
- Laboratory of Plant Anatomy, Institute of Biosciences, São Paulo State University, 18618-689 Botucatu, Brazil
| | - Massimo Nepi
- Laboratory of Analytical Methods for Chemical Ecology - Plant Reproductive Biology, Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, 53100 Siena, Italy
- National Biodiversity Future Center (NBFC), 90133 Palermo, Italy
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7
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Moura RF, Del-Claro K. Plants with extrafloral nectaries share indirect defenses and shape the local arboreal ant community. Oecologia 2023; 201:73-82. [PMID: 36372829 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-022-05286-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Associational resistance (AR) is a positive interaction in which a plant suffers less herbivore damage due to its association with a protective plant. Here, we evaluated whether plants with extra-floral nectaries (EFNs) can share indirect defenses with neighboring plants. We sampled 45 individuals of an EFN-bearing liana (Smilax polyantha) and recorded whether their support species had EFNs. In S. polyantha, we measured foliar herbivory and flower and fruit production. We examined the ant species composition and visitation of S. polyantha and whether they changed according to the supporting plant type (with or without EFNs). We experimentally determined whether S. polyantha supplemented with artificial nectaries could share indirect defenses with defenseless neighboring plants. Support plants with EFNs indirectly benefited S. polyantha by sharing mutualistic ant species. Smilax polyantha supported by plants with EFNs had a more specific ant species composition, a higher number of visiting ants and ant species richness, and exhibited nearly 3 times less foliar herbivory. However, we did not observe differences in fruit production between the two groups of S. polyantha. Finally, we observed that S. polyantha with artificial nectaries increased ant visitation on neighboring plants 2.5 times. We provide evidence that interspecific neighbors with EFNs can experience reciprocal benefits by sharing indirect defenses. Such local effects might escalate and affect the structure of plant communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renan Fernandes Moura
- Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
- Dead Sea and Arava Science Center, Masada, Israel.
- Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel.
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8
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Chinarelli HD, Nogueira A, Leal LC. Extrafloral nectar production induced by simulated herbivory does not improve ant bodyguard attendance and ultimately plant defence. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/blab159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Highly competitive and aggressive ant species are efficient bodyguards that monopolize the more attractive plants bearing extrafloral nectaries. Given that herbivory often increases the quality of extrafloral nectar, we hypothesized that plants damaged by herbivory would be more prone to interact with high-quality ant bodyguards and be better defended against herbivores. We performed an experiment with Chamaecrista nictitans plants. We induced anti-herbivore responses by applying jasmonic acid to a group of plants while keeping another group unmanaged. We measured extrafloral nectar production, censused ants visiting extrafloral nectaries and, subsequently, added herbivore mimics to measure the efficiency of ant anti-herbivore defence in both conditions. Induction increased the volume of extrafloral nectar and the mass of sugar per nectary without affecting the sugar concentration or the patterns of plant attendance and defence by ants. Thus, we found no evidence that defence-induced C. nictitans plants are more prone to interact with high-quality bodyguards or to receive better anti-herbivore defence. These findings highlight that increases in extrafloral nectar production are not always rewarded with increases in the biotic defences; instead, these rewards might be dependent on the traits of the nectar induced by herbivory events and/or on the ecological context in which the interaction is embedded. Consequently, herbivory might increase the costs of this induced biotic defence to plants bearing extrafloral nectaries when the induced defence does not increase the attractiveness of the plants to ants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henrique D Chinarelli
- Departamento de Ecologia e Biologia Evolutiva, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Rua Artur Riedel, 275 , Eldorado, Diadema, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Anselmo Nogueira
- Centro de Ciências Naturais e Humanas (CCNH), Universidade Federal do ABC, Alameda da Universidade, s/nº, Anchieta, São Bernardo do Campo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Laura C Leal
- Departamento de Ecologia e Biologia Evolutiva, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Rua Artur Riedel, 275 , Eldorado, Diadema, São Paulo, Brazil
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9
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Gale CC, Lesne P, Wilson C, Helms AM, Suh CPC, Sword GA. Foliar herbivory increases sucrose concentration in bracteal extrafloral nectar of cotton. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0258836. [PMID: 34714845 PMCID: PMC8555782 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0258836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2021] [Accepted: 10/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Cultivated cotton, such as Gossypium hirsutum L., produces extrafloral (EF) nectar on leaves (foliar) and reproductive structures (bracteal) as an indirect anti-herbivore defense. In exchange for this carbohydrate-rich substance, predatory insects such as ants protect the plant against herbivorous insects. Some EF nectar-bearing plants respond to herbivory by increasing EF nectar production. For instance, herbivore-free G. hirsutum produces more bracteal than foliar EF nectar, but increases its foliar EF nectar production in response to herbivory. This study is the first to test for systemically induced changes to the carbohydrate composition of bracteal EF nectar in response to foliar herbivory on G. hirsutum. We found that foliar herbivory significantly increased the sucrose content of bracteal EF nectar while glucose and fructose remained unchanged. Sucrose content is known to influence ant foraging behavior and previous studies of an herbivore-induced increase to EF nectar caloric content found that it led to increased ant activity on the plant. As a follow-up to our finding, ant recruitment to mock EF nectar solutions that varied in sucrose content was tested in the field. The ants did not exhibit any preference for either solution, potentially because sucrose is a minor carbohydrate component in G. hirsutum EF nectar: total sugar content was not significantly affected by the increase in sucrose. Nonetheless, our findings raise new questions about cotton’s inducible EF nectar responses to herbivory. Further research is needed to determine whether an herbivore-induced increase in sucrose content is typical of Gossypium spp., and whether it constitutes a corollary of systemic sucrose induction, or a potentially adaptive mechanism which enhances ant attraction to the plant
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Affiliation(s)
- Cody C. Gale
- Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Pierre Lesne
- Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, United States of America
| | - Caroline Wilson
- Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, United States of America
| | - Anjel M. Helms
- Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, United States of America
| | - Charles P-C. Suh
- Southern Plains Agricultural Research Center, USDA-ARS, College Station, Texas, United States of America
| | - Gregory A. Sword
- Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, United States of America
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Calixto ES, Lange D, Moreira X, Del‐Claro K. Plant species specificity of ant–plant mutualistic interactions: Differential predation of termites by
Cam
ponotus crassus
on five species of extrafloral nectaries plants. Biotropica 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/btp.12991] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Eduardo Soares Calixto
- Programa de Pós‐Graduação em Entomologia Faculdade de Filosofia Ciências e Letras Universidade de São Paulo Ribeirão Preto SP Brazil
| | - Denise Lange
- Programa de Pós‐Graduação em Recursos Naturais e Sustentabilidade Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná Santa Helena PR Brazil
| | - Xoaquín Moreira
- Misión Biológica de Galicia (MBG‐CSIC Pontevedra, Galicia Spain
| | - Kleber Del‐Claro
- Laboratório de Ecologia Comportamental e de Interações Instituto de Biologia Universidade Federal de Uberlândia Uberlândia MG Brazil
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11
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Lange D, Calixto ES, Del-Claro K, Stefani V. Spatiotemporal niche-based mechanisms support a stable coexistence of ants and spiders in an extrafloral nectary-bearing plant community. J Anim Ecol 2021; 90:1570-1582. [PMID: 33724464 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13477] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2020] [Accepted: 01/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Mechanisms promoting stable coexistence allow multiple species to persist in the same trophic level of a given network of species interactions. One of the most common stabilizing mechanisms of coexistence is niche differentiation, such as temporal and spatial patchiness. To understand the limits of coexistence between species we have to understand the limits of competitive interactions which translate in species exclusion or patterns of non-co-occurrence. We evaluated spatiotemporal niche-based mechanisms that could promote stable coexistence between ants and spiders which forage on extrafloral nectary (EFN)-bearing plants. We observed co-occurrence and overlapping patterns between ants and spiders in a temporal and spatial scale in nine different EFN-bearing plant species in a Neotropical savanna, using both community and species-level approach. Ants and spiders showed asynchrony of their abundances over the year with low temporal overlapping patterns between them (temporal niche specialization). Greater abundance of ants occurred between September and March, whereas greater abundance of spiders occurred between March and August, exactly at the time when the abundance of ants decreases on plants. However, there might also be some levels of temporal overlapping, but then individual ants and spiders occupy different branches (spatial segregation). Finally, we also observed a spatial negative effect of the abundance of ants on the presence of spiders. Our results suggest that spatiotemporal partitioning between ants and spiders may be one of the potential mechanisms behind a stable coexistence between these two groups of organisms that forage on EFN-bearing plants in the Brazilian savanna.
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Affiliation(s)
- Denise Lange
- Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Santa Helena, PR, Brazil
| | | | - Kleber Del-Claro
- Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, PR, Brazil.,Instituto de Biologia, LECI/Laboratório de Ecologia e Comportamento e Interações, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Uberlândia, PR, Brazil
| | - Vanessa Stefani
- Instituto de Biologia, LHINRA/Laboratório de História Natural e Reprodutiva de Artrópodes, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Uberlândia, PR, Brazil
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12
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Vázquez-Barrios V, Boege K, Sosa-Fuentes TG, Rojas P, Wegier A. Ongoing ecological and evolutionary consequences by the presence of transgenes in a wild cotton population. Sci Rep 2021; 11:1959. [PMID: 33479296 PMCID: PMC7820435 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-81567-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2020] [Accepted: 12/31/2020] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
After 25 years of genetically modified cotton cultivation in Mexico, gene flow between transgenic individuals and their wild relatives represents an opportunity for analysing the impacts of the presence of novel genes in ecological and evolutionary processes in natural conditions. We show comprehensive empirical evidence on the physiological, metabolic, and ecological effects of transgene introgression in wild cotton, Gossypium hirsutum. We report that the expression of both the cry and cp4-epsps genes in wild cotton under natural conditions altered extrafloral nectar inducibility and thus, its association with different ant species: the dominance of the defensive species Camponotus planatus in Bt plants, the presence of cp4-epsps without defence role of Monomorium ebeninum ants, and of the invasive species Paratrechina longicornis in wild plants without transgenes. Moreover, we found an increase in herbivore damage to cp4-epsps plants. Our results reveal the influence of transgene expression on native ecological interactions. These findings can be useful in the design of risk assessment methodologies for genetically modified organisms and the in situ conservation of G. hirsutum metapopulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valeria Vázquez-Barrios
- grid.9486.30000 0001 2159 0001Posgrado en Ciencias Biológicas, Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico ,grid.9486.30000 0001 2159 0001Laboratorio de Genética de la Conservación, Jardín Botánico, Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Karina Boege
- grid.9486.30000 0001 2159 0001Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Tania Gabriela Sosa-Fuentes
- grid.9486.30000 0001 2159 0001Laboratorio de Genética de la Conservación, Jardín Botánico, Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Patricia Rojas
- grid.452507.10000 0004 1798 0367Red de Biodiversidad y Sistemática, Instituto de Ecología A.C., Xalapa, Veracruz Mexico
| | - Ana Wegier
- grid.9486.30000 0001 2159 0001Laboratorio de Genética de la Conservación, Jardín Botánico, Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
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13
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Schifani E, Castracani C, Giannetti D, Spotti FA, Reggiani R, Leonardi S, Mori A, Grasso DA. New Tools for Conservation Biological Control: Testing Ant-Attracting Artificial Nectaries to Employ Ants as Plant Defenders. INSECTS 2020; 11:insects11020129. [PMID: 32079350 PMCID: PMC7074267 DOI: 10.3390/insects11020129] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2019] [Revised: 02/11/2020] [Accepted: 02/13/2020] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
Knowledge of the role of ants in many agroecosystems is relatively scarce, and in temperate regions the possibility to exploit ants as biocontrol agents for crop protection is still largely unexplored. Drawing inspiration from mutualistic ant–plant relationships mediated by extrafloral nectaries (EFNs), we tested the use of artificial nectaries (ANs) in order to increase ant activity on pear trees and to evaluate the effects on the arthropods, plant health and fruit production. While EFNs secrete a complex solution mainly composed of sugars and amino acids, ANs were filled with water and sucrose only. The results suggest that ANs can be used as manipulative instruments to increase ant activity over long periods of time. High ant activity was significantly linked to lower incidence of the pathogen fungus Venturia pyrina (pear scab) on pear leaves, and of the presence of Cydia pomonella (codling moth) caterpillars on pear fruit production. These results further encourage exploring underrated possibilities in the development of new tools for conservation biological control (CBC).
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Affiliation(s)
- Enrico Schifani
- Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences & Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, Parco Area delle Scienze, 11/a, 43124 Parma, Italy; (D.G.); (F.A.S.); (S.L.); (A.M.); (D.A.G.)
- Correspondence: (E.S.); (C.C.)
| | - Cristina Castracani
- Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences & Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, Parco Area delle Scienze, 11/a, 43124 Parma, Italy; (D.G.); (F.A.S.); (S.L.); (A.M.); (D.A.G.)
- Correspondence: (E.S.); (C.C.)
| | - Daniele Giannetti
- Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences & Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, Parco Area delle Scienze, 11/a, 43124 Parma, Italy; (D.G.); (F.A.S.); (S.L.); (A.M.); (D.A.G.)
| | - Fiorenza Augusta Spotti
- Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences & Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, Parco Area delle Scienze, 11/a, 43124 Parma, Italy; (D.G.); (F.A.S.); (S.L.); (A.M.); (D.A.G.)
| | - Roberto Reggiani
- Azienda Agraria Sperimentale Stuard, Strada Madonna dell’Aiuto, 7/a, 43126 San Pancrazio, Parma, Italy;
| | - Stefano Leonardi
- Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences & Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, Parco Area delle Scienze, 11/a, 43124 Parma, Italy; (D.G.); (F.A.S.); (S.L.); (A.M.); (D.A.G.)
| | - Alessandra Mori
- Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences & Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, Parco Area delle Scienze, 11/a, 43124 Parma, Italy; (D.G.); (F.A.S.); (S.L.); (A.M.); (D.A.G.)
| | - Donato Antonio Grasso
- Department of Chemistry, Life Sciences & Environmental Sustainability, University of Parma, Parco Area delle Scienze, 11/a, 43124 Parma, Italy; (D.G.); (F.A.S.); (S.L.); (A.M.); (D.A.G.)
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