Oviposition, larval survival and leaf damage by the willow leaf blotch miner, M icrurapteryx salicifoliella , in relation to leaf trichomes across 10 S alix species

1. Foliar trichomes clearly reduce chewing damage and efficiency of movement by some insect herbivores, but the effect of trichomes on insect oviposition is less well characterised. Trichomes are likely to have particularly strong, negative effects on species that require secure attachment of the egg to the leaf epidermis for successful transition to the feeding stage – a group that includes many leaf mining insects. 2. One such species, M icrurapteryx salicifoliella , must initially enter leaf cells directly from an egg adhered to the cuticle, but later instars can move between leaves and initiate new mines from the leaf exterior. 3. Natural patterns of occurrence by M . salicifoliella were quantified on 10 sympatric S alix species varying in trichome expression to test whether trichomes were associated with reduced oviposition, larval survival and leaf damage . 4. Mean egg density and leaf mining damage were negatively related to mean trichome density across S alix species. Survival of M . salicifoliella from egg to pupa was positively related to trichome density, suggesting that initiation of new mines by late‐instar larvae was not adversely affected by trichomes. There was no evidence that trichomes benefited leaf miner larvae indirectly by decreasing density‐dependent mortality; rather, the positive relationship between trichome density and larval survival may reflect less effective chemical defence by S alix species expressing high trichome density. 5. The results suggest that foliar trichomes serve as an effective defence against M . salicifoliella by deterring oviposition, but do not reduce the survivorship of those individuals that successfully transition from egg to larva.