Linked Life Data

17443950

Source:http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/id/17443950

Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
1
pubmed:dateCreated
2007-4-19
pubmed:abstractText
The evolution of visual warning signals is well known in animals but has received scant attention in plants. The coevolutionary hypothesis is the most influential hypothesis on warning signals in plants proposing that red and yellow leaf colours in autumn signal defensive strength to herbivores. So far, evidence in support of the hypothesis, which assumes a coevolutionary origin of autumnal leaf colours, is correlative and open to alternative explanations. We therefore tested the coevolutionary hypothesis experimentally by colouring the leaves either red or green of same-aged mountain ash (Sorbus aucuparia) individuals. We monitored the response of winged aphids to leaf colour using insect glue on branches with natural and artificial leaf colours in each individual. In contrast to the prediction of the coevolutionary hypothesis, aphid numbers did not differ between the individuals with artificial green or artificial red leaves. Likewise, at the within-plant level, aphids did not colonize branches with natural green leaves preferentially. However, we suggest that plants emitted warning signals because aphids colonized the hosts non-randomly. We found a strong positive correlation between aphid numbers and fruit production, suggesting an allocation trade-off between investment in plant defence and reproduction. Our study demonstrates that aphids use warning signals or cues in host selection, probably volatiles, but that they did not use leaf colour.
pubmed:commentsCorrections
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Feb
pubmed:issn
1744-9561
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:day
22
pubmed:volume
3
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
1-4
pubmed:dateRevised
2010-11-18
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2007
pubmed:articleTitle
Aphids do not attend to leaf colour as visual signal, but to the handicap of reproductive investment.
pubmed:affiliation
Institute of Biology, Albert Ludwigs University Freiburg, Hauptstr. 1, 79104 Freiburg, Germany. martin.schaefer@biologie.uni-freiburg.de
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't