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Science 2 November 1984:
Vol. 226. no. 4674, pp. 537 - 539
DOI: 10.1126/science.226.4674.537
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Articles

Leaf Herbivores Decrease Fitness of a Tropical Plant

ROBERT J. MARQUIS 1

1 Department of Botany and Program in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, 52242

Damage by insect herbivores to neighboring individuals of the shrub Piper arieianum in a neotropical wet forest varies greatly. This differential damage has a genetic basis and results in a 2-year decrease in growth, seed production, and seed viability, with larger plants recovering before smaller plants. The results provide evidence that leaf herbivores represent a potentially strong selective force for the evolution of plant defenses.

Submitted on March 9, 1984
Accepted on July 11, 1984


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