Publications
| plant genotype shapes ant-aphid interactions: implications for community structure and indirect plant defense. | little is known about the mechanisms by which plant genotype shapes arthropod community structure. in a field experiment, we measured the effects of milkweed (asclepias syriaca) genotype and ants on milkweed arthropods. populations of the ant-tended aphid aphis asclepiadis and the untended aphid myzocallis asclepiadis varied eight- to 18-fold among milkweed genotypes, depending on aphid species and whether ants were present. there was no milkweed effect on predatory arthropods. ants increased ap ... | 2008 | 18419551 |
| coexistence of three specialist aphids on common milkweed, asclepias syriaca. | coexistence of host-specific herbivores on plants is believed to be governed by interspecific interactions, but few empirical studies have systematically unraveled these dynamics. we investigated the role of several factors in promoting coexistence among the aphids aphis nerii, aphis asclepiadis, and myzocallis asclepiadis that all specialize on common milkweed (asclepias syriaca). competitive exclusion is thought to occur when interspecific competition is stronger than intraspecific competition ... | 2008 | 18724729 |