Defensive Function of Herbivore-Induced Plant Volatile Emissions in Nature

2001/03/16 by André Keßler, Ian T. Baldwin · 10 citations
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · #Insect-Plant Interactions and Control #Plant Parasitism and Resistance #Plant and animal studies

paper · doi:10.1126/science.291.5511.2141

openalex publication_date 2001/03/16 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/01

Abstract

Herbivore attack is known to increase the emission of volatiles, which attract predators to herbivore-damaged plants in the laboratory and agricultural systems. We quantified volatile emissions from Nicotiana attenuata plants growing in natural populations during attack by three species of leaf-feeding herbivores and mimicked the release of five commonly emitted volatiles individually. Three compounds (cis-3-hexen-1-ol, linalool, and cis-alpha-bergamotene) increased egg predation rates by a generalist predator; linalool and the complete blend decreased lepidopteran oviposition rates. As a consequence, a plant could reduce the number of herbivores by more than 90% by releasing volatiles. These results confirm that indirect defenses can operate in nature.

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• Ian T. Baldwin [wikipedia]