What are Some Herbivore Adaptations to Plant Defense?

Phytophagy ^[1] refers to one of the biological interactions, usually the phenomenon that animals feed on plants. It is almost impossible to find a plant that is not eaten by animals, and among animals, from lower animals to higher animals, there are many species that specialize in eating plants for a living. Animals eat plants are the basis of the natural food chain, and also the basic link of the food chain, and other links of the food chain depend on the existence of this link. It can be seen that all animals directly or indirectly depend on plants for food.

Herbivorous ^[1]

In nature, many animals feed on plants, such as locusts, silkworms, cabbage worms, and rabbits, horses, cattle, sheep, and camels.

Herbivores generally have double stomachs. The first one is equivalent to a food storage bag, and the latter one is used to digest food. There is ruminant behavior. Generally, you can spit out food at rest and chew it repeatedly. Digestive enzymes can digest cellulose, mainly amylase. The structure of the stomach wall is divided into 4 layers, and the gastric motility is strong.

Rabbits and other plants that feed on grass, vegetables, radishes, and other tender plants generally have teeth suitable for cutting plants and grinding food; their intestines are very long, especially the small intestine, which is the main part of digesting food; the cecum is developed, There are a large number of microorganisms in it, which can break the indigestible crude fiber into substances that can be absorbed and used.

Plant-eating insects are the largest, estimated at about 350,000 species, and some statistics indicate that plant-eating insects account for about 48% of the total number of insects. According to the range of plant-eating groups, insects can be divided into monophagous insects that only feed on one kind of plant, such as the Cypini species of the bee family; oligophagous insects that only feed on a few plant species, such as the larva of Monarch butterfly Polyphagous insects of many plant groups, such as gypsy moths feed on trees of most genera, and host species of at least 50 families of Chinese red larvae are about 200 species.

Insects that eat plant leaves have "canine teeth" adapted to feeding, that is, their "chewing mouthparts." The chewing mouthpiece is the most primitive type of mouthpiece, suitable for solid food. It consists of one upper lip, one lower lip, one tongue, and two upper and lower jaws. The upper jaw is very hard and is the main organ for chewing food. The front has sharp teeth and is used to cut food, similar to human incisors; the back is rough and has uneven grooves on it to grind and chew food, similar to our molars; and the lower jaw and lower lip have Tentacles that function as touch and taste.

Herbivores ^[2]

Insects and plants have formed various types of relationships through hundreds of millions of years of evolution. They are roughly classified into three categories according to their impact on plants: insects feed on plants; insects help plants reproduce, and insects and plants benefit each other. Insect edible plants have many patterns. They can eat different parts of the plant in different ways, such as chewing young stems and leaves, sucking plant juice; predating seeds; forming maggots on leaves and other parts; living tissues of borer plants. The second relationship is very beneficial to plants. Some groups of insects can help plants pollinate, such as bees of the order Hymenoptera, moths and butterflies of the order Lepidoptera, and some flies of the order Diptera. The plants actually bloomed colorful flowers, exuding a charming aroma to "invite bees and butterflies", dedicated nectar and pollen to entertain the "insect matchmaker" so that the insects helped them to pollinate and reproduce; the ants carried the seeds to the appropriate place. The germination site helps plants to reproduce. There is also a mutually beneficial relationship between insects and plants. Insects live in some specialized structure of plants. In return, insects provide nutrition to its "landlord" or provide protection to enemies who invade the plant, or Both.

Herbivorous herbivores

Artiodactyla, such as cattle, sheep, deer, camel, alpaca, hippopotamus; horse; white rhino; rabbit; panda (omnivorous animal, the main food is bamboo); kangaroo; some rodents: such as guinea pig, porcupine, water Dolphins, lemmings, prairie dogs; tortoises; grasshoppers.

Plant foods ^[3] have two major advantages. On the one hand, they are easy to find, on the other hand they do not escape. For small animals, there is another benefit ... plants are a great hiding place. But edible plants also have their drawbacks, because this kind of food is slow to eat and it is not easy to be digested ... An elephant in the secret army can eat 1/3 tons of food every day. They often push down trees to eat branches. Leaves.

Phytophagous

Leaf miners feed on leaf tissue, black rhinos, giraffes, elephants, sloths, koalas; some primates, such as gorillas and lemurs; musk deer, cockatoos; some reptiles: such as tortoises and green iguanas Lizards; broad waisted suborders: caterpillars, leaf miners, most snails, slugs.

Herbivorous fruit-eating animals

Some primates, such as orangutans, ghost night monkeys; flying foxes; some birds, such as parrots, hornbills, tadpoles; fruit flies; coconut crabs.

Phytophagus

Some rodents, such as hamsters, squirrels, moles; weevil; finch.

Phytophagous honeyeater

Bees; honey ants; butterflies; hawk moths; flower chafers; hummingbirds; honey suckers; some passerines: such as sunbirds and peckingbirds; long-nosed possums; some bats: for example, Ecuador long-lipped bats, Sorell long-lipped bats, long tongue Fruit bat.