Abstract
Plants have a variety of herbivore resistance traits, including a diverse array of chemicals, either inside plant tissues or on plant surfaces. External chemical defenses are common and widespread, though understudied as a class. One potential selective force on these defenses is their potential for abiotic dislodgement given their exposed position. I tested whether abiotic removal (artificial rainfall) leads to increased herbivory in the annual chenopod Atriplex rosea. This plant, like other chenopods, has specialized secretory trichomes, which secrete water-soluble herbivore resistance compounds onto the plant’s surfaces. Consistent with this hypothesis, I found significantly greater chewing herbivory in plants which received artificial rainfall compared to no-rainfall controls and a below-leaf water control. This simple experiment demonstrates that abiotic factors can directly change the efficacy of a resistance trait.
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