title: Drowning out the protection racket: partner manipulation or drought can strengthen ant-plant mutualism.
abstract: Two recent reports discuss interactions between plants and ants that defend them from herbivores. Acacia trees provide their ant bodyguards with a diet that reduces their ability to benefit from alternate hosts. Provisioning of ants by Cordia trees during drought may buy insurance against extreme defoliation events, not just average-year benefits.
authors.affiliation: Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, 1987 Upper Buford Circle, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA. Electronic address: denis036@umn.edu.
authors.forename: R Ford
authors.initials: RF
authors.lastname: Denison
mesh_terms: D000045:Acacia / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D001000:Ants / Q000502:physiology*; D001522:Behavior, Animal; D031213:Cordia / Q000502:physiology*; D055864:Droughts; D060434:Herbivory; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000502:physiology; D013559:Symbiosis; D014197:Trees