Abstract
As trees develop, they undergo morphological and physiological changes that can influence not only their performance, but also their interactions with herbivores. The expression of their defenses is influenced by changes in the selective pressures exerted by herbivores and by the plant’s tradeoffs in resource allocation, and can result in ontogenetic trajectories that show increases, decreases, or mixed trends in the expression of anti-herbivory traits. In some species, these trajectories occur as gradual transitions among ontogenetic stages, but in other species there are pronounced phase changes marked by heterophylly or by abrupt changes in chemical, physical, or biotic defenses. This chapter discusses the patterns of such trajectories and the multiple factors that can influence them, including the specific herbivores feeding on trees, the activities of herbivores’ natural enemies, the switches among the different defensive mechanisms that trees can express to reduce herbivory, the particular ecosystem in which they grow, and the influence of phylogenetic constraints that restrict or allow the evolution of ontogenetic trajectories in plant defense. Studies that integrate the role of ontogeny into evolutionary ecology theory will advance our understanding of how natural selection can target the ontogenetic trajectories of plant defense. Such research will also have application for targeting pest control onto vulnerable ontogenetic stages, and for selection of lines with improved defensive mechanisms to protect rare and endangered species as well as promote productivity in commercial stands.
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Boege, K., Barton, K.E., Dirzo, R. (2011). Influence of Tree Ontogeny on Plant-Herbivore Interactions. In: Meinzer, F., Lachenbruch, B., Dawson, T. (eds) Size- and Age-Related Changes in Tree Structure and Function. Tree Physiology, vol 4. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1242-3_7
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