5. Herbivory Flashcards
What is herbivory?
One animals eats all or part of plant
What defences to plants have to animals?
Structural or chemical
What is an example of plants with structural defences?
Matagouri
What used to try and eat the Matagouri?
Moa. Giant birds
Name examples of chemicals used by plants for defence?
Steroids, terpenes, Acetogenins, phenylpropanes, alkaloids
What are the two possible reasons for chemicals from plants?
Either by products of metabolism or chemically evolved to repel herbivores
What is a typical alkaloid?
Nicotine, morphine or Caffine
What is a typical phenylpropane?
Cinnamon/Cloves
Which oak uses chemical processes to deter predators?
Pedunculate oak, Quercia roberu
Where is the pedunculate oak common
English lowlands
What makes the ped oak special?
Attacked by more herbivore species than any other uk tree
How many moth larvae attach the ped oak?
Over 200
What happens to the number of species on the ped oak a year?
Fluctuates, high in spring low in summer
Which animal is closely studied on the ped oak?
Winter moth
Why are there more winter moths on ped in spring?
Softer leaves
Who fist thought that leaves becoming less palatable had an effect on moths?
Feeny 1970
Why did no adults pupate on older leaves?
Not enough food nutrients, larvae were too small
What is the ped oak pumping into the leaf?
Tannins, bond proteins in complexes reducing palatability
What miners feed on leaf mesophyll cells?
Leaf miners
How do Oak trees in general defend themselves?
Chemical (tannins)
Structural (altered leaf texture)
What animal helps to prevent the acacia?
Ants
How many species of acacia ants are there?
150+
Which acacias have partnerships with the ants?
Swollen Thorn Acacias
Where do the ants live?
Inside the thorns
What is the relationship between acacia and ants called?
Mutualisms
What does the acacia depend on?
The acacia depends on the ants for defence against herbivores
What does the acacia provide for the ant?
Specialised areas for food, Beltian bodies, nectarines
What is the ant acacia system an example of?
Coevolution of two species in mutual benefit
What was acacia suvival rate, ants and pre ants
72-43
Name an example of many animals sharing a natural rescource?
The Serengeti plains
How much tannins do trees need to contain to stop winter moths?
Just 1%
How many species of swollen thorn acacias are there?
700
How large is the Serengeti planes?
23,000sqkm
Give an example of different herbivore species selecting different parts of the same plants?
Animals in the Serengeti, sheath stem leaf of plants
What do zebras eat more of?
Mostly stems, sheaths
What do wildebeest eat more of?
Sheaths and leaves
What do Thompson gazelles eat?
Sheaths, other herbs
Who discovered the relationship between Serengeti animals?
Bell 1971
In 3-5 days how much biomass can wildebeest destroy from the plains?
85%, plant height drops by 56%
What algae is common in fresh water?
Stream benthic algae
What Caddisfly larvae was studies in the lamberti and resh experiment?
Heliopsyche borealis
How many larvae are there per square metre?
4000
How much of the total biomass in US rivers do larvae occupy?
25%
What does the lamberi and resh test show?
Helicopphyce significantly reduces the abundence of its food
What can herbivorous invertebrates affect?
Biomass
Taxonomic composition
Form
Species richness
