How does climate change affect the availability and distribution of plant resources for herbivores?
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Climate change impacts the availability and distribution of plant resources for herbivores in various ways. Studies show that rising temperatures and CO2 levels can alter plant traits, nutrient content, and phenology, affecting herbivore-plant interactions. Climate-induced changes in plant chemistry, such as increased secondary metabolites, can influence herbivore growth and nutrition positively. Additionally, shifts in plant phenology, like shorter periods of peak productivity and earlier senescence, reduce the temporal window of available forage for herbivores. Large herbivores adapt to environmental variability through foraging strategies based on plant biomass, quality, and phenology, influenced by anatomical traits like body size and mouth anatomy. Overall, climate change alters plant resources, impacting herbivore nutrition, growth, and survival.
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| Papers (4) | Insight |
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| Climate change-induced warming alters leaf nutrients and metabolites in plants, favoring nutrition of specialist herbivores like Battus polydamas archidamas by enhancing growth and food conversion efficiency. | |
| Climate change impacts plant resources for herbivores by altering forage quality and distribution. It leads to hotter conditions, increased drought frequency, and ecosystem fragmentation, restricting access to essential forage classes. | |
08 Jul 2022 3 Citations | Climate change leads to shorter peak plant productivity periods, earlier flowering, and longer senescence, reducing the availability of forage for herbivores due to altered understory plant phenology. |
| Climate change alters plant nutrient availability, impacting the quality and quantity of resources for herbivores. Fluctuating climate variables can disrupt plant-nutrient interactions, potentially affecting herbivore food sources. |
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