Ecological Entomology (2011) 36, 442-449
Johan A. Stenberg, Anna Lehrman and Christer Björkman (2011)
Host-plant genotype mediates supply and demand of animal food in an omnivorous insect
Ecological Entomology 36 (4), 442-449
Abstract: 1. Omnivorous predators can protect plants from herbivores, but may also consume plant material themselves. Omnivores and their purely herbivorous prey have previously been thought to respond similarly to host-plant quality. However, different responses of omnivores and herbivores to their shared host plants may influence the fitness, trophic identity, and population dynamics of the omnivores.
2. The aim of the present study was to show that an omnivorous heteropteran (Anthocoris nemorum L.) and two strictly herbivorous prey species respond differently to different genotypes of their shared host plant, Salix. Some plant genotypes were sub-optimal for the omnivore, although suitable for the herbivores, and vice versa.
3. The contrasting patterns of plant suitability for the omnivore and the herbivores highlight an interaction between plant genotype and omnivores' access to animal food. Plant genotypes that were sub-optimal for the omnivore when herbivores were experimentally excluded became the best host plants when herbivores were present, as in the latter situation additional prey became available. By contrast, the quality of plant genotypes that were intrinsically suitable for omnivores, did not improve when herbivores were present as these plant genotypes were intrinsically sub-optimal for herbivores, thus providing omnivores with almost no additional animal food.
4. The differential responses of omnivores and their prey to the same host-plant genotypes should allow omnivores to colonise sub-optimal host plants in their capacity as predators, and to colonise more suitable host plants in their capacity as herbivores. It may thus be difficult for Salix to escape herbivory entirely, as it will rarely be unsuitable for both omnivores and pure herbivores at the same time.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Johan A. Stenberg, Christer Björkman
Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
biocontrol - natural enemies
Research topic(s) for beneficials or antagonists:
general biology - morphology - evolution
Pest and/or beneficial records:
| Beneficial | Pest/Disease/Weed | Crop/Product | Country | Quarant.
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anthocoris nemorum (predator) |
