Caladium steudnerifolium mimics illness to avoid predation

http://news.bbc.co.uk/earth/hi/earth_news/newsid_8108000/8108940.stm

I thought this was pretty neat! It appears that the specific pattern of variegation on C. steudnerifolium mimics insect damage and protects the plants. Attached are my own photos for the two variations of the species. This really makes me wonder if other variegated aroids from Ecuador developed the variegation as a defence as well (particularly the Dieffenbachias)....

 

Fascinating! Thanks, lorax.
Just goes to show---plants may not have human intelligence, but they are pretty smart.

 

It probably should be asked whether the inhibition of predation in the control plants was because of the variegation pattern produced OR some chemical deterrence because of the use of white correction fluid.

 

White correction fluid???

 

The researchers used white correction fluid on the control plants to mimic variegation.

 

I can tell you from my own observations of wild specimens of C. steudnerifolium, which is a fairly common plant in the forests I frequent, that the variegated ones are definitely less prone to leaf-boring caterpillars than the solid green ones. I passed nearly 50 specimens of the soild green before I found an entire, unblemished leaf to record, but was able to photograph the very first of the variegated examples I came across. This would seem to support their conclusions, white-out or no.

 

I wasn't arguing against their conclusions....but it is still possible their control plants were useless because of the use of white out, which I know has a strong chemical smell.

they could have done the opposite as well...cover up the variegation of the variegated plants and see whether it is attacked more. Maybe it's not the variegation that's causing the deterrence but some chemical defense whose symptom in the plant with this defense is the variegation.

 

I'd be inclined to agree with that, except that the natives here, who use C. steudnerifolium leaves as a food source, would tell me then that one or the other of the leaves tastes better. As it is, I have been told on numerous occasions that the reason that the variegated leaves are usually what's on the table is simply because they're less buggy.

 

Insects can see in the infrared and UV; who's to say they don't sense chemicals differently than we do?

Their conclusion is probably sound and what the reality is (seems to make sense), but again, the study does not explicitly address (or discard) chemical reasons for the defense.

 

Well then, I've got my work cut out for me, don't I? Now all I need is a portable gas chromatograph....

 

As who among us does not?

 

Hi there .... of course we also had a control group of plain leaved plants painted with the same correction fluid (but without any pigments!) to exclude chemical reasons for our results. Please read the original paper!
greetz
ulf

 

Thanks! . . . But . . . how many people are able to read the original paper? I found the reference (Evol. Ecol. 23 (4): 503-512), but when I clicked on the link to get the article, I was denied access unless I cough up an extortionate sum, as invariably the case with money-grabbing $pringerLink.

Can you post the pdf as an attachment here please, so we can all read it?

 

I think we'll have a copyright problem with that ...
Is there any way to send it to you as a private message on this side?

 

Does the copyright not remain with the authors? It should do!

 

Copyright always remains with the author unless there is a contract to the contrary.

Regardless, I'd like to be able to read it as well. My address: Steve@ExoticRainforest.com

 

It's not possible to publish my paper here. Sorry.

 

I've bumped up your user level, so you now have access to private messaging.