Chemically mediated interactions between woody plants and browsing mammals
Issue Date
1992-01-01Keywords
mammalswoody plants
environmental factors
tannins
digestion
herbivores
regrowth
secondary metabolites
defense mechanisms
browsing damage
browsing
forage
chemical constituents of plants
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Bryant, J. P., Reichardt, P. B., & Clausen, T. P. (1992). Chemically mediated interactions between woody plants and browsing mammals. Journal of Range Management, 45(1), 18-24.Publisher
Society for Range ManagementJournal
Journal of Range ManagementDescription
Paper presented at the "Symposium on Ingestion of Poisonous Plants by Livestock," February 15, 1990, Reno, Nevada.DOI
10.2307/4002520Additional Links
https://rangelands.org/Abstract
A diverse array of secondary metabolites deters feeding by mammals on woody plants. However, not all secondary metabolites are equally deterrent and the potencies of these substances as antifeedants is related to their structures. Although the physiological reason underlying deterrence by secondary metabolites is not well understood, the available evidence indicates that toxicity is more important than digestion inhibition. Resource limitation influences the production of secondary metabolites by woody plants. Species that are adapted to unproductive habitats are more chemically defended than species that are adapted to productive habitats. Resource limitation also affects the phenotypic expression of chemical defense with nutrient stress favoring increased production of carbon-based secondary metabolites and reduced production of nitrogen-containing secondary metabolites. Light stress has the opposite effects on the production of these substances. Herbivory by mammals also affects the chemical defenses of woody plants. In some cases browsing results in increased defense and in others decreased defense. Three circumstances under which browsing by mammals can change the chemical defenses of woody plants are discussed.Type
textArticle
Language
enISSN
0022-409Xae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.2307/4002520