Anti-herbivore defences and insect herbivory: interactive effects of drought and tree neighbours

1. How much a plant is attacked by insect herbivores likely depends on its apparency and ability to produce defensive traits, which may be modified by neighbouring plants and abiotic conditions. Yet, how much the direct and trait-mediated effects of neighbours on herbivory is modified by abiotic factors is still unknown. 2. By using a tree diversity experiment in SW France, we measured leaf insect herbivory (chewers and miners), nutritional quality (water content, C/N ratio, sugar and starch content) and chemical defences (total polyphenolics and condensed tannins) on birch (Betula pendula) trees growing in monocultures and mixtures with oak, pine or both species. We alleviated water stress by irrigating trees in half of the plots while trees remained unwatered (i.e., drought-stressed) in the other half. 3. Overall, insect herbivory was higher among heterospecific neighbours, which corresponds to associational susceptibility. Consistent with this finding, leaves had lower amount of anti...