by If a plant is stressed, it is not silent. You will not hear the crawling of the plant because it is located in the ultrasound area-too high for human ears, but for decades scientists have been using special devices to listen.
For the first time, a team of researchers in Israel has documented that insects can hear and interpret the acoustic emergency signals of plants.
This finding is based on the previous work of the research group that makes tomato and tobacco systems in dehydration, said Rya Seltzer, an entomologist and doctoral student of the zoology of the zoology of the University of Tel Aviv in Israel, said the main studies author Rya Seltzer.
“The prevailing hypothesis is that these noises are generated within the xylem vessels due to changes in the water compensation of the plant,” said Saltzer CNN in an e -mail.
In times of stress out of a lack of water, air bubbles, expand and collapse are formed in xylem tissue. This episode of events creates vibrations and creates click-like sounds every few seconds, which the researchers measured in the acoustic frequency range of around 20 to 100 kilohertz. They appreciated these frequencies to be audible for insects up to 16 feet (about 5 meters). (Sound waves at frequencies of more than 20 kilohertz are typically beyond the area of human hearing).
The scientists wanted to know whether these ultrasound noises were absorbed by insects, and therefore observed the Egyptian cotton leafwurmot (Spodoptera Littoralis), which lays its eggs on herbal leaves. The study team found that these moths tended, crazy, emphasized to avoid tomato plants. Instead, the insects preferred tomato plants, which were quieter and therefore in a better condition, with leaves that would offer a juicy meal for newly slipped larvae, according to a recently published study.
“(Research) shows a surprising new way of how animals can feel and react to information from the environment – in this case, insects absorb noise from stressed plants,” Dr. Zhang, which examines the chemical communication between insects and plants in the chemical sense of Monell in Philadelphia, was not involved in the study.
Just because the moths hear noise from dehydrated plants and react to noises does not mean that the plants and moths have a conversation, said Saltzer.
“It is important to clarify that we have observed an interaction – no communication,” she added. “It is crucial to understand that plants will probably produce these noises passively and do not actively try to communicate with insects.”
The researchers used special devices to recognize the ultrasound noise emitted by needy plants. – University of Tel Aviv
Listen and interpret
When the scientists presented female moths with the choice between a dry and a fresh tomato plant, the moths flocked to the fresh plant to lay their eggs. However, the team wanted to understand whether the noises from the dehydrated plant were a factor for choosing the moths. The researchers built an arena that consisted of two boxes. In a box they played shots of plant emergency sounds while the other box was still.
In the experiment, moths moved to the loud box and the scientists theorize that the sounds pointed out that they would find a living plant there. This preference disappeared when the scientists deaf and led to the conclusion that moths heard the plants before they made their decisions, wrote the authors of the study.
In another experiment, the researchers again offered the female moths a selection of two tomato plants. This time both plants were hydrated, but one was close to a speaker that played ultrasound noise. The result: more of the moths have selected the quieter plant.
In a third experiment, it was tested whether the egg laying female were influenced by other acoustic indications, such as those of male moths, the ultrasound advertising. According to the study, the females found, according to the study, when the calls of male moths were broadcast from one side of the arena, “no significant preference” where they lay their eggs.
Together, these experiments told the researchers that the moths heard and recognized the moths of plants – and that they use this acoustic information to make decisions about these plants for their reproduction, said Saltzer.
“Cool and surprising”
Insects have been able to recognize ultrasound noise since at least the Eocene era (55.8 million to 33.9 million years). However, the researchers were surprised to see that the moths recognized the ultrasound signs of the plants of distress, said Saltzer. Although female moths in the experiments had never had eggs before-and therefore had no previous experience in deciphering acoustic clues from plants-they not only recognized plant noises, but also preferred quieter plants for the first time.
“It’s a really cool and surprising discovery!” Said Zhang. “We have known for a long time that plants give smells when they are in difficulties, e.g.
“It is new here that sound provides additional information – like a warning signal -, especially if there is no smell or the smell is difficult to see.”
Plant Acoustics is a growing interest for scientists, and preliminary work indicates that the sound finding is widespread, said Saltzer. Future research could investigate the use of acoustic surveillance in order to understand how stress has affected the health of the systems and to identify potential applications for the control of agricultural pest control.
“I think this is just the beginning of discoveries in this area,” said Saltzer. “There are countless organisms that can hear in these frequencies, and possibly many other plant noises that we have not yet discovered,” she added. “This is definitely just the tip of the iceberg.”
Mindy Weisberger is a scientific author and media producer whose work has been published in Live Science, Scientific American and How IT Works Magazine. She is the author of “Rise of the Zombie Bugs: The surprising science of parasitic spiritual control” (Hopkins Press).
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