Aphid colony size is affected by plant chemotype and terpenoid mixture evenness in tansy

Abstract

Plants are hosts for above- and belowground insect communities that can influence each other via above-belowground plant-physiological dynamics. To mediate interactions, plants produce secondary metabolites, including terpenoids, and mixtures can differ intraspecifically. While intraspecific variation in plant chemistry gained increased interest, the extent to which intraspecific differences in plant chemistry mediate above-belowground interactions of herbivores remains unclear. We used a full factorial design with six distinct terpenoid chemotypes, differing in their chemical diversity of tansy (Tanacetum vulgare). We exposed these to the aboveground herbivore Macrosiphoniella tanacetaria (Hemiptera: Aphididae), the belowground herbivore Agriotes sp. (Coleoptera: Elateridae), no herbivore or both herbivores, to determine if chemotypes or the chemical diversity of plant compounds affected aphid performance and if the chemical profile mediated the interactions between herbivores. We found that aphid colony size differed between chemotypes, with the strongest colony increase over time in a mixed-mixtures chemotype, and the weakest in a {beta}-thujone chemotype. Root herbivory had no effect on aphid colony size and this did not differ between chemotypes. Aphid colony size was positively correlated with terpenoid evenness, but not with other diversity components. Tansy chemotypes differed in their morphological responses to aboveground herbivory, whereas belowground herbivory exerted minimal impacts. Overall, our results show that intraspecific variation in terpenoid profiles directly and indirectly modify ecological interactions on a plant, with plant chemistry mediating aphid performance and chemotypes differing in their morphological responses to herbivory.