IADIZA   20886
INSTITUTO ARGENTINO DE INVESTIGACIONES DE LAS ZONAS ARIDAS
Unidad Ejecutora - UE
artículos
Título:
Leaf-folding response of a sensitive plant shows context-dependent behavioral plasticity
Autor/es:
SABRINA AMADOR-VARGAS; MARISOL DOMINGUEZ; GUNNARY LEON; BELEN MALDONADO; JOHANNA MURILLO; GABRIEL L. VIDES
Revista:
PLANT ECOLOGY
Editorial:
SPRINGER
Referencias:
Lugar: Dordrecht; Año: 2014 vol. 215 p. 1445 - 1454
ISSN:
1385-0237
Resumen:
The fast touch-induced folding of leaves in
sensitive plants may function for deterring herbivores,
but it relies on energetically costly action potentials
and interferes with photosynthesis. Here, we tested
whether the intensity of the folding response in Mimosa
pudica was modulated based on previous experiences,
and whether the modulation was dependent on the
probability of exposure to herbivores or pollinators.
Younger leaves (under higher herbivory risk) reopened
faster with repetitions but showed complete folding at
all trials, which should be more effective as defense,
but limits light exposure for longer; older leaves
changed from complete to partial folding with trials,
but maintained similar reopening times, which should
decrease loses in photosynthesis but is less effective as
defense. Unlike leaves away from inflorescences,
leaves near inflorescences (i.e. more likely to be
touched by flower visitors, a non-damaging stimulus)
marginally decreased reopening times and shifted from
complete to partial folding, a combination that
decreases to the least the time leaves are light limited.
All leaves showed an increased response when a new
stimulus was presented after the repeated trials,
suggesting that the decrease in response after repeated
stimulation was not caused by mechanism exhaustion.
This study shows habituation-like plasticity in a plant
thigmonastic response that conforms to expectations of
behavioral ecology theory usually applied to animals.