Abstract
Due to climate change the ranges of many plant species will shift from presently warm to previously cold climate regions. Invasive plant species may become serious pests in their new environments, if they are released from their herbivores. Root-feeding nematodes are major herbivores of grasslands. The goal of the proposed study is to examine (1) how exotic plant species from warm climate regions control the abundance of root-feeding nematodes in their native versus their non-native range (the current temperate zone) and (2) the importance of different defence strategies for the control of root-feeding nematodes. In greenhouse experiments, I will compare growth and plant defences between plants of the same species from the native and the non-native range in presence of root-feeding nematode and potential antagonists to the nematodes. In addition, I will investigate if the plants exude or emit substances that attract the antagonists in trials with olfactomters. Studying how the abundance of root-feeding nematodes is controlled in natural ecosystems may help to improve the biological control of nematodes in agro-ecosystems.
Sweden