Tree resistance to Lymantria dispar caterpillars: importance and limitations of foliar tannin composition

The ability of foliar tannins to increase plant resistance to herbivores is potentially determined by the composition of the tannins; hydrolyzable tannins are much more active as prooxidants in the guts of caterpillars than are condensed tannins. By manipulating the tannin compositions of two contrasting tree species, this work examined: (1) whether increased levels of hydrolyzable tannins increase the resistance of red oak (Quercus rubra L.), a tree with low resistance that produces mainly condensed tannins, and (2) whether increased levels of condensed tannins decrease the resistance of sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.), a tree with relatively high resistance that produces high levels of hydrolyzable tannins. As expected, when Lymantria dispar L. caterpillars ingested oak leaves coated with hydrolyzable tannins, levels of hydrolyzable tannin oxidation increased in their midgut contents. However, increased tannin oxidation had no significant impact on oxidative stress in the surrounding midgut tissues. Although growth efficiencies were decreased by hydrolyzable tannins, growth rates remained unchanged, suggesting that additional hydrolyzable tannins are not sufficient to increase the resistance of oak. In larvae on condensed tannin-coated maple, no antioxidant effects were observed in the midgut, and levels of tannin oxidation remained high. Consequently, neither oxidative stress in midgut tissues nor larval performance were significantly affected by high levels of condensed tannins. Post hoc comparisons of physiological mechanisms related to tree resistance revealed that maple produced not only higher levels of oxidative stress in the midgut lumen and midgut tissues of L. dispar, but also decreased protein utilization efficiency compared with oak. Our results suggest that high levels of hydrolyzable tannins are important for producing oxidative stress, but increased tree resistance to caterpillars may require additional factors, such as those that produce nutritional stress.