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92-416: See text Azolla ( mosquito fern , water fern , fairy moss ) is a genus of seven species of aquatic ferns in the family Salviniaceae . They are extremely reduced in form and specialized, looking nothing like other typical ferns but more resembling the form of some mosses or even duckweeds . Azolla filiculoides is one of just two fern species for which a reference genome has been published. It

184-557: A species : see Botanical name and Specific name (zoology) . The rules for the scientific names of organisms are laid down in the nomenclature codes , which allow each species a single unique name that, for animals (including protists ), plants (also including algae and fungi ) and prokaryotes ( bacteria and archaea ), is Latin and binomial in form; this contrasts with common or vernacular names , which are non-standardized, can be non-unique, and typically also vary by country and language of usage. Except for viruses ,

276-523: A decrease in abundance of leaf-chewing larvae in the fall when hardwood leaf palatability decreases due to increased tannin levels which results in a decline of arthropod species richness , and increased palatability of plant communities at higher elevations where grasshoppers abundances are lower. Climatic stressors such as ocean acidification can lead to responses in plant-herbivore interactions in relation to palatability as well. The myriad defenses displayed by plants means that their herbivores need

368-649: A foodstuff for human consumption, however, no long-term studies of the safety of eating Azolla have been made on humans. Previous studies attributed neurotoxin production to Anabaena flos-aquae species, which is also a type of nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria. Studies published in 2024 have found that “the Azolla–Nostoc azollae superorganism does not contain BMAA or their isomers DAB and AEG and that Azolla and N. azollae do not synthesize other common cyanotoxins”. Further research may be needed to ascertain whether A. azollae

460-623: A greater and more diverse set of resources. Coevolution and phylogenetic correlation between herbivores and plants are important aspects of the influence of herbivore and plant interactions on communities and ecosystem functioning, especially in regard to herbivorous insects. This is apparent in the adaptations plants develop to tolerate and/or defend from insect herbivory and the responses of herbivores to overcome these adaptations. The evolution of antagonistic and mutualistic plant-herbivore interactions are not mutually exclusive and may co-occur. Plant phylogeny has been found to facilitate

552-465: A herbivore in a dense forest would spend more time handling (eating) the vegetation because there was so much vegetation around than a herbivore in a sparse forest, who could easily browse through the forest vegetation. According to the Holling's disk equation, a herbivore in the sparse forest would be more efficient at eating than the herbivore in the dense forest. The marginal value theorem describes

644-574: A hot, tropical environment. This research was conducted by the Institute of Environmental Biology at Utrecht University . It indicates that massive patches of Azolla growing on the (then) freshwater surface of the Arctic Ocean consumed enough carbon dioxide from the atmosphere for the global greenhouse effect to decline, eventually causing the formation of ice sheets in Antarctica and

736-651: A later homonym of a validly published name is a nomen illegitimum or nom. illeg. ; for a full list refer to the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants and the work cited above by Hawksworth, 2010. In place of the "valid taxon" in zoology, the nearest equivalent in botany is " correct name " or "current name" which can, again, differ or change with alternative taxonomic treatments or new information that results in previously accepted genera being combined or split. Prokaryote and virus codes of nomenclature also exist which serve as

828-628: A long time and redescribed as new by a range of subsequent workers, or if a range of genera previously considered separate taxa have subsequently been consolidated into one. For example, the World Register of Marine Species presently lists 8 genus-level synonyms for the sperm whale genus Physeter Linnaeus, 1758, and 13 for the bivalve genus Pecten O.F. Müller, 1776. Within the same kingdom, one generic name can apply to one genus only. However, many names have been assigned (usually unintentionally) to two or more different genera. For example,

920-495: A mutual relationship with the plant species that they forage by digging and disturbing the sediment which removes competing plants and subsequently allows colonization of other plant species. When herbivores are affected by trophic cascades , plant communities can be indirectly affected. Often these effects are felt when predator populations decline and herbivore populations are no longer limited, which leads to intense herbivore foraging which can suppress plant communities. With

1012-557: A new patch of food when the patch they are currently feeding on requires more energy to obtain food than an average patch. Within this theory, two subsequent parameters emerge, the Giving Up Density (GUD) and the Giving Up Time (GUT). The Giving Up Density (GUD) quantifies the amount of food that remains in a patch when a forager moves to a new patch. The Giving Up Time (GUT) is used when an animal continuously assesses

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1104-468: A reduction in the proportion of polyunsaturated fatty acids in the fronds , thus lowering their palatability and nutritive value. Azolla cannot survive winters with prolonged freezing, so is often grown as an ornamental plant at high latitudes where it cannot establish itself firmly enough to become a weed. It is also not tolerant of salinity ; normal plants cannot survive in greater than 1–1.6‰, and even conditioned organisms die if grown in water with

1196-409: A reference for designating currently accepted genus names as opposed to others which may be either reduced to synonymy, or, in the case of prokaryotes, relegated to a status of "names without standing in prokaryotic nomenclature". An available (zoological) or validly published (botanical) name that has been historically applied to a genus but is not regarded as the accepted (current/valid) name for

1288-715: A result of their plant-based diet, herbivorous animals typically have mouth structures ( jaws or mouthparts ) well adapted to mechanically break down plant materials, and their digestive systems have special enzymes (e.g. amylase and cellulase ) to digest polysaccharides . Grazing herbivores such as horses and cattles have wide flat- crowned teeth that are better adapted for grinding grass , tree bark and other tougher lignin -containing materials, and many of them evolved rumination or cecotropic behaviors to better extract nutrients from plants. A large percentage of herbivores also have mutualistic gut flora made up of bacteria and protozoans that help to degrade

1380-679: A salinity above 5.5‰. Azolla filiculoides (red azolla) is the only member of this genus and of the family Azollaceae in Tasmania . It is a common native aquatic plant in Tasmania . It is common behind farm dams and other still waterbodies. The plants are small (usually only a few cm across) and float, but they are fast growing, and can be abundant and form large mats. The plants are typically red, and have small, water repellent leaves. Azolla reproduces sexually, and asexually (by splitting). Like all ferns, sexual reproduction leads to spore formation, but unlike other members of this group Azolla

1472-635: A single plant can have hundreds of different chemical defenses. Chemical defenses can be divided into two main groups, carbon-based defenses and nitrogen-based defenses. Plants have also changed features that enhance the probability of attracting natural enemies to herbivores. Some emit semiochemicals, odors that attract natural enemies, while others provide food and housing to maintain the natural enemies' presence, e.g. ants that reduce herbivory. A given plant species often has many types of defensive mechanisms, mechanical or chemical, constitutive or induced, which allow it to escape from herbivores. According to

1564-427: A taxon; however, the names published in suppressed works are made unavailable via the relevant Opinion dealing with the work in question. In botany, similar concepts exist but with different labels. The botanical equivalent of zoology's "available name" is a validly published name . An invalidly published name is a nomen invalidum or nom. inval. ; a rejected name is a nomen rejiciendum or nom. rej. ;

1656-574: A terrestrial mammal to be called a grazer, at least 90% of the forage has to be grass, and for a browser at least 90% tree leaves and twigs. An intermediate feeding strategy is called "mixed-feeding". In their daily need to take up energy from forage, herbivores of different body mass may be selective in choosing their food. "Selective" means that herbivores may choose their forage source depending on, e.g., season or food availability, but also that they may choose high quality (and consequently highly nutritious) forage before lower quality. The latter especially

1748-471: A thick mat on the surface of the water, making it more difficult for the larvae to reach the surface to breathe, effectively choking the larvae. Azolla has been proposed as a carbon sequestration modality. The proposal draws upon the hypothesized Azolla event that asserts that Azolla once covered the Arctic and then sank, permanently sequestering teratons of carbon that would otherwise have contributed to

1840-455: A total of c. 520,000 published names (including synonyms) as at end 2019, increasing at some 2,500 published generic names per year. "Official" registers of taxon names at all ranks, including genera, exist for a few groups only such as viruses and prokaryotes, while for others there are compendia with no "official" standing such as Index Fungorum for fungi, Index Nominum Algarum and AlgaeBase for algae, Index Nominum Genericorum and

1932-399: A tradeoff however, between foraging on many plant species to avoid toxins or specializing on one type of plant that can be detoxified. Herbivore modification is when various adaptations to body or digestive systems of the herbivore allow them to overcome plant defenses. This might include detoxifying secondary metabolites , sequestering toxins unaltered, or avoiding toxins, such as through

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2024-438: A trophic cascade involved plant-herbivore interactions are coral reef ecosystems. Herbivorous fish and marine animals are important algae and seaweed grazers, and in the absence of plant-eating fish, corals are outcompeted and seaweeds deprive corals of sunlight. Agricultural crop damage by the same species totals approximately $ 100 million every year. Insect crop damages also contribute largely to annual crop losses in

2116-523: A tropical biomass agricultural system, reducing the need for food supplements. Concerns about biomagnification exist because the plant may contain the neurotoxin BMAA that remains present in the bodies of animals consuming it and BMAA has been documented as passing along the food chain . Azolla may contain this substance that is a possible cause of neurodegenerative diseases, including causing ALS, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's. Azolla has been suggested as

2208-579: A variety of physical and metabolic alterations in the way the host plant interacts with itself and other surrounding biotic factors. Fungi, bacteria, and protists that feed on living plants are usually termed plant pathogens (plant diseases), while fungi and microbes that feed on dead plants are described as saprotrophs . Flowering plants that obtain nutrition from other living plants are usually termed parasitic plants . There is, however, no single exclusive and definitive ecological classification of consumption patterns; each textbook has its own variations on

2300-527: A variety of skills to overcome these defenses and obtain food. These allow herbivores to increase their feeding and use of a host plant. Herbivores have three primary strategies for dealing with plant defenses: choice, herbivore modification, and plant modification. Feeding choice involves which plants a herbivore chooses to consume. It has been suggested that many herbivores feed on a variety of plants to balance their nutrient uptake and to avoid consuming too much of any one type of defensive chemical. This involves

2392-603: Is heterosporous , producing spores of two kinds. During the summer months, numerous spherical structures called sporocarps form on the undersides of the branches. The male sporocarp is greenish or reddish and looks like the egg mass of an insect or spider. It is two millimeters in diameter, and bears numerous male sporangia . Male spores (microspores) are extremely small and are produced inside each microsporangium . Microspores tend to adhere in clumps called massulae. Female sporocarps are much smaller, containing one sporangium and one functional spore. Since an individual female spore

2484-526: Is a healthy foodstuff for humans. Azolla has been used for at least one thousand years in rice paddies as a companion plant , to fix nitrogen and to block out light to prevent competition from other plants. Rice is planted when tall enough to poke through the Azolla layer. Mats of mature Azolla can also be used as a weed-suppressing mulch . Rice farmers used Azolla as a rice biofertilizer 1500 years ago. The earliest known written record of this practice

2576-460: Is a model for predicting animal behavior while looking for food or other resources, such as shelter or water. This model assesses both individual movement, such as animal behavior while looking for food, and distribution within a habitat, such as dynamics at the population and community level. For example, the model would be used to look at the browsing behavior of a deer while looking for food, as well as that deer's specific location and movement within

2668-403: Is aided in reproduction. Plants can also be indirectly affected by herbivores through nutrient recycling , with plants benefiting from herbivores when nutrients are recycled very efficiently. Another form of plant-herbivore mutualism is physical changes to the environment and/or plant community structure by herbivores which serve as ecosystem engineers , such as wallowing by bison. Swans form

2760-857: Is believed that this genus grew so prolifically during the Eocene (and thus absorbed such a large amount of carbon) that it triggered a global cooling event that has lasted to the present. Azolla may establish as an invasive plant in areas where it is not native . In such a situation it can alter aquatic ecosystems and biodiversity substantially. Phylogeny of Azolla A. nilotica Decne. ex Mett. (Nile Azolla) A. filiculoides Lam. (Large mosquito fern) A. rubra R.Br. A. caroliniana Willdenow 1810 (Eastern/Carolinian mosquito fern) Azolla cristata Kaulf. (Mexican mosquito fern) A. pinnata R.Br. (Ferny/Pacific Azolla; Feathered mosquitofern) Other species include: At least six extinct species are known from

2852-434: Is considerably larger than a male spore, it is termed a megaspore . Azolla has microscopic male and female gametophytes that develop inside the male and female spores . The female gametophyte protrudes from the megaspore and bears a small number of archegonia , each containing a single egg. The microspore forms a male gametophyte with a single antheridium which produces eight swimming sperm. The barbed glochidia on

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2944-431: Is derived from Latin herba 'small plant, herb' and vora , from vorare 'to eat, devour'. Herbivory is a form of consumption in which an organism principally eats autotrophs such as plants , algae and photosynthesizing bacteria . More generally, organisms that feed on autotrophs in general are known as primary consumers . Herbivory is usually limited to animals that eat plants. Insect herbivory can cause

3036-563: Is determined by the body mass of the herbivore, with small herbivores selecting for high-quality forage, and with increasing body mass animals are less selective. Several theories attempt to explain and quantify the relationship between animals and their food, such as Kleiber's law , Holling's disk equation and the marginal value theorem (see below). Kleiber's law describes the relationship between an animal's size and its feeding strategy, saying that larger animals need to eat less food per unit weight than smaller animals. Kleiber's law states that

3128-612: Is discouraged by both the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature and the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants , there are some five thousand such names in use in more than one kingdom. For instance, A list of generic homonyms (with their authorities), including both available (validly published) and selected unavailable names, has been compiled by the Interim Register of Marine and Nonmarine Genera (IRMNG). The type genus forms

3220-633: Is in a book written by Jia Ssu Hsieh (Jia Si Xue) in 540 AD on The Art of Feeding the People (Chih Min Tao Shu). By the end of the Ming dynasty in the early 17th century, Azolla 's use as a green compost was documented in local records. The myth that no mosquito can penetrate the coating of fern to lay its eggs in the water gives the plant its common name "mosquito fern". Azolla have been used to control mosquito larvae in rice fields. The plant grows in

3312-783: Is irrelevant and derived to explain trends that do not exist in nature. Holling's disk equation models the efficiency at which predators consume prey. The model predicts that as the number of prey increases, the amount of time predators spend handling prey also increases, and therefore the efficiency of the predator decreases. In 1959, S. Holling proposed an equation to model the rate of return for an optimal diet: Rate (R )=Energy gained in foraging (Ef)/(time searching (Ts) + time handling (Th)) R = E f / ( T s + T h ) {\displaystyle R=Ef/(Ts+Th)} Where s=cost of search per unit time f=rate of encounter with items, h=handling time, e=energy gained per encounter. In effect, this would indicate that

3404-460: Is somewhat arbitrary. Although all species within a genus are supposed to be "similar", there are no objective criteria for grouping species into genera. There is much debate among zoologists about whether enormous, species-rich genera should be maintained, as it is extremely difficult to come up with identification keys or even character sets that distinguish all species. Hence, many taxonomists argue in favor of breaking down large genera. For instance,

3496-474: Is the type species , and the generic name is permanently associated with the type specimen of its type species. Should the specimen turn out to be assignable to another genus, the generic name linked to it becomes a junior synonym and the remaining taxa in the former genus need to be reassessed. In zoological usage, taxonomic names, including those of genera, are classified as "available" or "unavailable". Available names are those published in accordance with

3588-488: Is the ability of a plant to withstand damage without a reduction in fitness. This can occur by diverting herbivory to non-essential plant parts, resource allocation, compensatory growth, or by rapid regrowth and recovery from herbivory. Resistance refers to the ability of a plant to reduce the amount of damage it receives from herbivores. This can occur via avoidance in space or time, physical defenses, or chemical defenses. Defenses can either be constitutive, always present in

3680-621: The International Code of Zoological Nomenclature ; the earliest such name for any taxon (for example, a genus) should then be selected as the " valid " (i.e., current or accepted) name for the taxon in question. Consequently, there will be more available names than valid names at any point in time; which names are currently in use depending on the judgement of taxonomists in either combining taxa described under multiple names, or splitting taxa which may bring available names previously treated as synonyms back into use. "Unavailable" names in zoology comprise names that either were not published according to

3772-824: The International Plant Names Index for plants in general, and ferns through angiosperms, respectively, and Nomenclator Zoologicus and the Index to Organism Names for zoological names. Totals for both "all names" and estimates for "accepted names" as held in the Interim Register of Marine and Nonmarine Genera (IRMNG) are broken down further in the publication by Rees et al., 2020 cited above. The accepted names estimates are as follows, broken down by kingdom: The cited ranges of uncertainty arise because IRMNG lists "uncertain" names (not researched therein) in addition to known "accepted" names;

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3864-491: The cellulose in plants, whose heavily cross-linking polymer structure makes it far more difficult to digest than the protein - and fat -rich animal tissues that carnivores eat. Herbivore is the anglicized form of a modern Latin coinage, herbivora , cited in Charles Lyell 's 1830 Principles of Geology . Richard Owen employed the anglicized term in an 1854 work on fossil teeth and skeletons. Herbivora

3956-586: The fossil record : Azolla is a highly productive plant . It can double its biomass in as little as 1.9 days, depending on growing conditions, and yield can reach 8–10 tonnes fresh matter/ha in Asian rice fields. 37.8 t fresh weight/ha (2.78 t/ha dry weight) has been reported for Azolla pinnata in India (Hasan et al., 2009). Azolla floats on the surface of water by means of numerous small, closely overlapping scale-like leaves , with their roots hanging in

4048-404: The platypus belongs to the genus Ornithorhynchus although George Shaw named it Platypus in 1799 (these two names are thus synonyms ) . However, the name Platypus had already been given to a group of ambrosia beetles by Johann Friedrich Wilhelm Herbst in 1793. A name that means two different things is a homonym . Since beetles and platypuses are both members of the kingdom Animalia,

4140-485: The water . They form a symbiotic relationship with the cyanobacterium Anabaena azollae , an extracellular endosymbiont (living outside the host's cells) which fixes atmospheric nitrogen . The typical limiting factor on its growth is phosphorus ; thus, an abundance of phosphorus—due for example to eutrophication or chemical runoff—often leads to Azolla blooms. Unlike all other known plants, its symbiotic microorganism transfers directly from one generation to

4232-432: The wetland ecosystem . Such differences in herbivore modalities can potentially lead to trade-offs that influence species traits and may lead to additive effects on community composition and ecosystem functioning. Seasonal changes and environmental gradients such as elevation and latitude often affect the palatability of plants which in turn influences herbivore community assemblages and vice versa. Examples include

4324-473: The French botanist Joseph Pitton de Tournefort (1656–1708) is considered "the founder of the modern concept of genera". The scientific name (or the scientific epithet) of a genus is also called the generic name ; in modern style guides and science, it is always capitalised. It plays a fundamental role in binomial nomenclature , the system of naming organisms , where it is combined with the scientific name of

4416-515: The U.S. Herbivores also affect economics through the revenue generated by hunting and ecotourism. For example, the hunting of herbivorous game species such as white-tailed deer, cottontail rabbits, antelope, and elk in the U.S. contributes greatly to the billion-dollar annually, hunting industry. Ecotourism is a major source of revenue, particularly in Africa, where many large mammalian herbivores such as elephants, zebras, and giraffes help to bring in

4508-416: The balance between eating all the food in a patch for immediate energy, or moving to a new patch and leaving the plants in the first patch to regenerate for future use. The theory predicts that absent complicating factors, an animal should leave a resource patch when the rate of payoff (amount of food) falls below the average rate of payoff for the entire area. According to this theory, an animal should move to

4600-442: The base for higher taxonomic ranks, such as the family name Canidae ("Canids") based on Canis . However, this does not typically ascend more than one or two levels: the order to which dogs and wolves belong is Carnivora ("Carnivores"). The numbers of either accepted, or all published genus names is not known precisely; Rees et al., 2020 estimate that approximately 310,000 accepted names (valid taxa) may exist, out of

4692-451: The coating of fern to lay its eggs in the water gives the plant its common name "mosquito fern", and may deter the survival of some of the larvae. Most species can produce large amounts of deoxyanthocyanins in response to various stresses, including bright sunlight and extreme temperatures, causing the water surface to appear to be covered with an intensely red carpet. Herbivore feeding induces accumulation of deoxyanthocyanins and leads to

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4784-421: The colder climate. It can form mats up to 30 centimetres (12 in) thick and cover 100% of a water surface, preventing local insects and amphibians from reaching the surface. A study of Arctic paleoclimatology reported that Azolla may have had a significant role in reversing an increase in greenhouse effect that occurred 55 million years ago that had caused the region around the north pole to turn into

4876-824: The colonization and community assembly of herbivores, and there is evidence of phylogenetic linkage between plant beta diversity and phylogenetic beta diversity of insect clades such as butterflies . These types of eco-evolutionary feedbacks between plants and herbivores are likely the main driving force behind plant and herbivore diversity. Abiotic factors such as climate and biogeographical features also impact plant-herbivore communities and interactions. For example, in temperate freshwater wetlands herbivorous waterfowl communities change according to season, with species that eat above-ground vegetation being abundant during summer, and species that forage below-ground being present in winter months. These seasonal herbivore communities differ in both their assemblage and functions within

4968-510: The current "icehouse period" . This theory has been termed the Azolla event . Azolla can remove chromium , nickel , copper , zinc , and lead from effluent. It can also remove lead from solutions containing 1–1000 ppm. Genus The composition of a genus is determined by taxonomists . The standards for genus classification are not strictly codified, so different authorities often produce different classifications for genera. There are some general practices used, however, including

5060-424: The effectiveness of plant defenses activated by sunlight. A plant defense is a trait that increases plant fitness when faced with herbivory. This is measured relative to another plant that lacks the defensive trait. Plant defenses increase survival and/or reproduction (fitness) of plants under pressure of predation from herbivores. Defense can be divided into two main categories, tolerance and resistance. Tolerance

5152-538: The end of that period. Herbivory among four-limbed terrestrial vertebrates, the tetrapods , developed in the Late Carboniferous (307–299 million years ago). The oldest known example being Desmatodon hesperis. Early tetrapods were large amphibious piscivores . While amphibians continued to feed on fish and insects, some reptiles began exploring two new food types, tetrapods (carnivory) and plants (herbivory). The entire dinosaur order ornithischia

5244-493: The first land plants evolved. Insects fed on the spores of early Devonian plants, and the Rhynie chert also provides evidence that organisms fed on plants using a "pierce and suck" technique. During the next 75 million years , plants evolved a range of more complex organs, such as roots and seeds. There is no evidence of any organism being fed upon until the middle-late Mississippian , 330.9  million years ago . There

5336-596: The food chain because they consume plants to digest the carbohydrates photosynthetically produced by a plant. Carnivores in turn consume herbivores for the same reason, while omnivores can obtain their nutrients from either plants or animals. Due to a herbivore's ability to survive solely on tough and fibrous plant matter, they are termed the primary consumers in the food cycle (chain). Herbivory, carnivory, and omnivory can be regarded as special cases of consumer–resource interactions . Two herbivore feeding strategies are grazing (e.g. cows) and browsing (e.g. moose). For

5428-565: The food source, in this case, the plant. Several factors play into these fluctuating populations and help stabilize predator-prey dynamics. For example, spatial heterogeneity is maintained, which means there will always be pockets of plants not found by herbivores. This stabilizing dynamic plays an especially important role for specialist herbivores that feed on one species of plant and prevents these specialists from wiping out their food source. Prey defenses also help stabilize predator-prey dynamics, and for more information on these relationships see

5520-426: The forested habitat and its interaction with other deer while in that habitat. This model has been criticized as circular and untestable. Critics have pointed out that its proponents use examples that fit the theory, but do not use the model when it does not fit the reality. Other critics point out that animals do not have the ability to assess and maximize their potential gains, therefore the optimal foraging theory

5612-446: The form "author, year" in zoology, and "standard abbreviated author name" in botany. Thus in the examples above, the genus Canis would be cited in full as " Canis Linnaeus, 1758" (zoological usage), while Hibiscus , also first established by Linnaeus but in 1753, is simply " Hibiscus L." (botanical usage). Each genus should have a designated type , although in practice there is a backlog of older names without one. In zoology, this

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5704-832: The fossil record of their jaws near the Permio-Carboniferous boundary, approximately 300 million years ago. The earliest evidence of their herbivory has been attributed to dental occlusion , the process in which teeth from the upper jaw come in contact with teeth in the lower jaw is present. The evolution of dental occlusion led to a drastic increase in plant food processing and provides evidence about feeding strategies based on tooth wear patterns. Examination of phylogenetic frameworks of tooth and jaw morphologes has revealed that dental occlusion developed independently in several lineages tetrapod herbivores. This suggests that evolution and spread occurred simultaneously within various lineages. Herbivores form an important link in

5796-737: The generic name (or its abbreviated form) still forms the leading portion of the scientific name, for example, Canis lupus lupus for the Eurasian wolf subspecies, or as a botanical example, Hibiscus arnottianus ssp. immaculatus . Also, as visible in the above examples, the Latinised portions of the scientific names of genera and their included species (and infraspecies, where applicable) are, by convention, written in italics . The scientific names of virus species are descriptive, not binomial in form, and may or may not incorporate an indication of their containing genus; for example,

5888-432: The idea that a newly defined genus should fulfill these three criteria to be descriptively useful: Moreover, genera should be composed of phylogenetic units of the same kind as other (analogous) genera. The term "genus" comes from Latin genus , a noun form cognate with gignere ('to bear; to give birth to'). The Swedish taxonomist Carl Linnaeus popularized its use in his 1753 Species Plantarum , but

5980-430: The incorporation of silica into cell walls is analogous to that of the role of lignin in that it is a compression-resistant structural component of cell walls; so that plants with their cell walls impregnated with silica are thereby afforded a measure of protection against herbivory. Chemical defenses are secondary metabolites produced by the plant that deter herbivory. There are a wide variety of these in nature and

6072-406: The interaction of herbivory and plant defense is negative, with one individual reducing the fitness of the other, some is beneficial. This beneficial herbivory takes the form of mutualisms in which both partners benefit in some way from the interaction. Seed dispersal by herbivores and pollination are two forms of mutualistic herbivory in which the herbivore receives a food resource and the plant

6164-633: The largest component, with 23,236 ± 5,379 accepted genus names, of which 20,845 ± 4,494 are angiosperms (superclass Angiospermae). By comparison, the 2018 annual edition of the Catalogue of Life (estimated >90% complete, for extant species in the main) contains currently 175,363 "accepted" genus names for 1,744,204 living and 59,284 extinct species, also including genus names only (no species) for some groups. The number of species in genera varies considerably among taxonomic groups. For instance, among (non-avian) reptiles , which have about 1180 genera,

6256-645: The lizard genus Anolis has been suggested to be broken down into 8 or so different genera which would bring its ~400 species to smaller, more manageable subsets. Herbivore A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants , especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage , fruits or seeds , as the main component of its diet . These more broadly also encompass animals that eat non-vascular autotrophs such as mosses , algae and lichens , but do not include those feeding on decomposed plant matters (i.e. detritivores ) or macrofungi (i.e. fungivores ). As

6348-619: The male spore clusters cause them to cling to the female megaspores, thus facilitating fertilization. In addition to its traditional cultivation as a bio-fertilizer for wetland paddies, Azolla is finding increasing use for sustainable production of livestock feed . Azolla is rich in protein, essential amino acids, vitamins, and minerals. Studies describe feeding Azolla to dairy cattle , pigs, ducks, and chickens, with reported increases in milk production , weight of broiler chickens and egg production of layers, as compared to conventional feed. One FAO study describes how Azolla integrates into

6440-407: The metabolic rate (q 0 ) of an animal is the mass of the animal (M) raised to the 3/4 power: q 0 =M Therefore, the mass of the animal increases at a faster rate than the metabolic rate. Herbivores employ numerous types of feeding strategies. Many herbivores do not fall into one specific feeding strategy, but employ several strategies and eat a variety of plant parts. Optimal foraging theory

6532-403: The most (>300) have only 1 species, ~360 have between 2 and 4 species, 260 have 5–10 species, ~200 have 11–50 species, and only 27 genera have more than 50 species. However, some insect genera such as the bee genera Lasioglossum and Andrena have over 1000 species each. The largest flowering plant genus, Astragalus , contains over 3,000 species. Which species are assigned to a genus

6624-428: The name could not be used for both. Johann Friedrich Blumenbach published the replacement name Ornithorhynchus in 1800. However, a genus in one kingdom is allowed to bear a scientific name that is in use as a generic name (or the name of a taxon in another rank) in a kingdom that is governed by a different nomenclature code. Names with the same form but applying to different taxa are called "homonyms". Although this

6716-532: The next. A. azollae is completely dependent on its host, as several of its genes have either been lost or transferred to the nucleus in Azolla's cells. The nitrogen-fixing capability of Azolla has led to widespread use as a biofertiliser , especially in parts of southeast Asia . The plant has been used to bolster agricultural productivity in China for over a thousand years. When rice paddies are flooded in

6808-402: The patch quality. Interactions between plants and herbivores can play a prevalent role in ecosystem dynamics such community structure and functional processes. Plant diversity and distribution is often driven by herbivory, and it is likely that trade-offs between plant competitiveness and defensiveness , and between colonization and mortality allow for coexistence between species in

6900-473: The planet's greenhouse effect and ending a warming event that reached 12–15 °C (22–27 °F) degrees warmer than twenty-first century averages. They contribute significantly to decreasing the atmospheric CO 2 levels. This fern has been introduced to other parts of the world, including the United Kingdom , where it has become a pest in some areas. A nominally tropical plant, it has adapted to

6992-570: The plant, or induced, produced or translocated by the plant following damage or stress. Physical, or mechanical, defenses are barriers or structures designed to deter herbivores or reduce intake rates, lowering overall herbivory. Thorns such as those found on roses or acacia trees are one example, as are the spines on a cactus. Smaller hairs known as trichomes may cover leaves or stems and are especially effective against invertebrate herbivores. In addition, some plants have waxes or resins that alter their texture, making them difficult to eat. Also

7084-538: The presence of herbivores. However, the effects of herbivory on plant diversity and richness is variable. For example, increased abundance of herbivores such as deer decrease plant diversity and species richness , while other large mammalian herbivores like bison control dominant species which allows other species to flourish. Plant-herbivore interactions can also operate so that plant communities mediate herbivore communities. Plant communities that are more diverse typically sustain greater herbivore richness by providing

7176-403: The production of large amounts of saliva to reduce effectiveness of defenses. Herbivores may also utilize symbionts to evade plant defenses. For example, some aphids use bacteria in their gut to provide essential amino acids lacking in their sap diet. Plant modification occurs when herbivores manipulate their plant prey to increase feeding. For example, some caterpillars roll leaves to reduce

7268-541: The provisions of the ICZN Code, e.g., incorrect original or subsequent spellings, names published only in a thesis, and generic names published after 1930 with no type species indicated. According to "Glossary" section of the zoological Code, suppressed names (per published "Opinions" of the International Commission of Zoological Nomenclature) remain available but cannot be used as the valid name for

7360-490: The section on Plant Defenses. Eating a second prey type helps herbivores' populations stabilize. Alternating between two or more plant types provides population stability for the herbivore, while the populations of the plants oscillate. This plays an important role for generalist herbivores that eat a variety of plants. Keystone herbivores keep vegetation populations in check and allow for a greater diversity of both herbivores and plants. When an invasive herbivore or plant enters

7452-556: The size of herbivores having an effect on the amount of energy intake that is needed, larger herbivores need to forage on higher quality or more plants to gain the optimal amount of nutrients and energy compared to smaller herbivores. Environmental degradation from white-tailed deer ( Odocoileus virginianus ) in the US alone has the potential to both change vegetative communities through over-browsing and cost forest restoration projects upwards of $ 750 million annually. Another example of

7544-497: The specific name particular to the wolf. A botanical example would be Hibiscus arnottianus , a particular species of the genus Hibiscus native to Hawaii. The specific name is written in lower-case and may be followed by subspecies names in zoology or a variety of infraspecific names in botany . When the generic name is already known from context, it may be shortened to its initial letter, for example, C. lupus in place of Canis lupus . Where species are further subdivided,

7636-436: The spring, they can be planted with Azolla , which then quickly multiplies to cover the water, suppressing weeds. The rotting plant material resulting from the die off of this Azolla releases nitrogen into the water for the rice plants, providing up to nine tonnes of protein per hectare per year. Azolla are weeds in many parts of the world, entirely covering some bodies of water. The myth that no mosquito can penetrate

7728-412: The standard format for a species name comprises the generic name, indicating the genus to which the species belongs, followed by the specific epithet, which (within that genus) is unique to the species. For example, the gray wolf 's scientific name is Canis lupus , with Canis ( Latin for 'dog') being the generic name shared by the wolf's close relatives and lupus (Latin for 'wolf') being

7820-453: The system, the balance is thrown off and the diversity can collapse to a monotaxon system. The back and forth relationship of plant defense and herbivore offense drives coevolution between plants and herbivores, resulting in a "coevolutionary arms race". The escape and radiation mechanisms for coevolution, presents the idea that adaptations in herbivores and their host plants, has been the driving force behind speciation . While much of

7912-403: The taxon is termed a synonym ; some authors also include unavailable names in lists of synonyms as well as available names, such as misspellings, names previously published without fulfilling all of the requirements of the relevant nomenclatural code, and rejected or suppressed names. A particular genus name may have zero to many synonyms, the latter case generally if the genus has been known for

8004-485: The theme. The understanding of herbivory in geological time comes from three sources: fossilized plants, which may preserve evidence of defence (such as spines), or herbivory-related damage; the observation of plant debris in fossilised animal faeces ; and the construction of herbivore mouthparts. Although herbivory was long thought to be a Mesozoic phenomenon, fossils have shown that plants were being consumed by arthropods within less than 20 million years after

8096-421: The theory of predator –prey interactions, the relationship between herbivores and plants is cyclic. When prey (plants) are numerous their predators (herbivores) increase in numbers, reducing the prey population, which in turn causes predator number to decline. The prey population eventually recovers, starting a new cycle. This suggests that the population of the herbivore fluctuates around the carrying capacity of

8188-576: The values quoted are the mean of "accepted" names alone (all "uncertain" names treated as unaccepted) and "accepted + uncertain" names (all "uncertain" names treated as accepted), with the associated range of uncertainty indicating these two extremes. Within Animalia, the largest phylum is Arthropoda , with 151,697 ± 33,160 accepted genus names, of which 114,387 ± 27,654 are insects (class Insecta). Within Plantae, Tracheophyta (vascular plants) make up

8280-429: The virus species " Salmonid herpesvirus 1 ", " Salmonid herpesvirus 2 " and " Salmonid herpesvirus 3 " are all within the genus Salmonivirus ; however, the genus to which the species with the formal names " Everglades virus " and " Ross River virus " are assigned is Alphavirus . As with scientific names at other ranks, in all groups other than viruses, names of genera may be cited with their authorities, typically in

8372-429: Was a gap of 50 to 100 million years between the time each organ evolved and the time organisms evolved to feed upon them; this may be due to the low levels of oxygen during this period, which may have suppressed evolution. Further than their arthropod status, the identity of these early herbivores is uncertain. Hole feeding and skeletonization are recorded in the early Permian , with surface fluid feeding evolving by

8464-431: Was composed of herbivorous dinosaurs. Carnivory was a natural transition from insectivory for medium and large tetrapods, requiring minimal adaptation. In contrast, a complex set of adaptations was necessary for feeding on highly fibrous plant materials. Arthropods evolved herbivory in four phases, changing their approach to it in response to changing plant communities. Tetrapod herbivores made their first appearance in

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