<b>Leaf domatia in montane forest and Caatinga in the semiarid of Pernambuco State: Morphology and ecological implications

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Leaf domatia are cavity-shaped structures of different types or tufts of hairs located at the junction between ribs on the abaxial surface of the leaf blades of various families of angiosperms, serving as protection against phytophagous organisms by harboring beneficial mites, suggesting a mutualistic relationship. There is shortage of inventories of species with such structures; thus the present study examined native woody plant in two habitats of the backwoods of Pernambuco to identify the types of leaf domatia. 86 species were observed, 43 in Caatinga area, out of which five had domatia, and 43 in the montane forest, 11 species with domatia. Four types of domatia were observed: hairtufts, pocket, pit and revolute margin. There was predominance of plant species with leaf domatia in the area Carro Quebrado in Triunfo, Pernambuco State. These results corroborate the information available in the literature in which domatia are prevalent in more humid environments, and that these structures as micro-habitats influence the maintenance of diverse organisms.

Ontogenia das cavidades secretoras e ocorrência de domácias em folhas Campomanesia adamantium (Cambess.) O. Berg (Myrtaceae)

“…As domácias de C. adamantium apresentam abertura para o exterior repleta de tricomas tectores (FIGURA 2 B), caracerística que parece ser comum nas domácias [16,26] .…”

“…Contudo, em um estudo envolvendo 86 espécies pertencentes a 33 famílias, a presença de domácias foi verificada em somente 13 espécies de 8 famílias, sendo citada apenas uma espécie de Myrtaceae, genericamente indicada como Campomanesia sp. [16] . Do ponto de vista anatômico não encontramos trabalhos descrevendo esta estrutura em Myrtaceae.…”

Population growth of Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae) and predation rate of the pest mite by Neoseiulus idaeus Denmark & Muma (Acari: Phytoseiidae) in two grape cultivars

“…Phytophagous and predaceous mites might be directly affected by the host plants via some structures or chemical compounds present on leaves and other plant parts, which may influence their movement, feeding and reproduction behaviors. In this aspect, structures like trichome and domatium may affect the searching and prey-capture efficiency for predaceous mites, influencing on the survival and oviposition rates of the mites (WALTER, 1996;KRIPS et al, 1998;AFZAL;BASHIR, 2007;ROMERO et al, 2011;RAMALHO et al, 2014).…”