title: Behaviorally plastic host-plant use by larval Lepidoptera in tri-trophic food webs.
abstract: Plant-insect interactions research emphasizes adaptive plasticity of plants and carnivores, such as parasitoids, implying a relatively passive role of herbivores. Current work is addressing this deficit, with exciting studies of behavioral plasticity of larval Lepidoptera (caterpillars). Here I use select examples to illustrate the diversity of behaviorally plastic host-plant use by caterpillars, including anti-predator tactics, self-medication, and evasion of dynamic plant defenses, as proof of the agency of caterpillar behavior in plant-insect interactions. I emphasize the significance of adaptive behavioral plasticity of caterpillars in the context of tri-trophic interactions. Recent research on trait-mediated indirect interactions places adaptive behavioral plasticity of herbivores at the center of community and food web dynamics, with far-reaching consequences of issues such as community stability.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT 06459, USA. Electronic address: msinger@wesleyan.edu.
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Singer
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D020387:Food Chain; D007814:Larva / Q000502:physiology; D007915:Lepidoptera / Q000502:physiology*; D010944:Plants / Q000469:parasitology*