Premium
Herbivory mitigation through increased water‐use efficiency in a leaf‐mining moth–apple tree relationship
Author(s) -
PINCEBOURDE SYLVAIN,
FRAK ELA,
SINOQUET HERVÉ,
REGNARD JEAN LUC,
CASAS JÉRÔME
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
plant, cell and environment
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.646
H-Index - 200
eISSN - 1365-3040
pISSN - 0140-7791
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-3040.2006.01598.x
Subject(s) - gracillariidae , transpiration , photosynthesis , biology , leaf miner , water use efficiency , herbivore , stomatal conductance , specific leaf area , assimilation (phonology) , botany , shading , horticulture , agronomy , lepidoptera genitalia , art , linguistics , philosophy , visual arts
Herbivory alters plant gas exchange but the effects depend on the type of leaf damage. In contrast to ectophagous insects, leaf miners, by living inside the leaf tissues, do not affect the integrity of the leaf surface. Thus, the effect of leaf miners on CO 2 uptake and water‐use efficiency by leaves remains unclear. We explored the impacts of the leaf‐mining moth Phyllonorycter blancardella (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae) on light responses of the apple leaf gas exchanges to determine the balance between the negative effects of reduced photosynthesis and potential positive impacts of increased water‐use efficiency (WUE). Gas exchange in intact and mined leaf tissues was measured using an infrared gas analyser. The maximal assimilation rate was slightly reduced but the light response of net photosynthesis was not affected in mined leaf tissues. The transpiration rate was far more affected than the assimilation rate in the mine integument as a result of stomatal closure from moderate to high irradiance level. The WUE was about 200% higher in the mined leaf tissues than in intact leaf portions. Our results illustrate a novel mechanism by which plants might minimize losses from herbivore attacks; via trade‐offs between the negative impacts on photosynthesis and the positive effects of increased WUE.