Eliciting maize defense pathways aboveground attracts belowground biocontrol agents.
Plant defense pathways mediate multitrophic interactions above and belowground. Understanding the effects of these pathways on pests and natural enemies above and belowground holds great potential for designing effective control strategies. Here we investigate the effects of aboveground stimulation of plant defense pathways on the interactions between corn, the aboveground herbivore adult Diabrotica speciosa, the belowground herbivore larval D. speciosa, and the subterranean ento-mopathogenic nematode natural enemy Heterorhabditis amazonensis. We show that adult D. speciosa recruit to aboveground herbivory and methyl salicylate treatment, that larval D. speciosa are relatively indiscriminate, and that H. amazonensis en-tomopathogenic nematodes recruit to corn fed upon by adult D. speciosa. These results suggest that entomopathogenicnematodes belowground can be highly attuned to changes in the aboveground parts of plants and that biological control can be enhanced with induced plant defense in this and similar systems.
Universidade Federal de Lavras, Department of Entomology, Lavras, 37200-000, Brazil.
Camila Cramer
CC
Filgueiras
Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology, Gainesville, 32608, USA.
Denis S
DS
Willett
Universidade Federal de Lavras, Department of Entomology, Lavras, 37200-000, Brazil.
Ramom Vasconcelos
RV
Pereira
Universidade Federal de Lavras, Department of Entomology, Lavras, 37200-000, Brazil.
Alcides
A
Moino Junior
Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas - UNICAMP, Departamento de Biologia Animal, Campinas, 13083-970, Brazil.
Martin
M
Pareja
Citrus Research and Education Center, University of Florida, Department of Entomology and Nematology, Lake Alfred, 33850, USA.
Larry W
LW
Duncan
D000818:Animals; D061046:Biological Control Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D001517:Coleoptera / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D060434:Herbivory; D007814:Larva / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D009348:Nematoda / Q000502:physiology; D011235:Predatory Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D012459:Salicylates / Q000494:pharmacology; D003313:Zea mays / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000469:parasitology
D061046:Biological Control Agents; D012459:Salicylates; C033069:methyl salicylate