Plant-aphid-environment interactions

Daniel Leybourne from our Ecological Sciences Group will deliver this Entomological Club seminar entitled “Plant-aphid-environment interactions”. It will be held at the James Hutton Institute in Dundee (and screened to the Institute’s Aberdeen site).
In this talk Daniel will discuss plant-aphid-environment interactions in an agricultural system, the talk will focus primarily on several interactions between two related grass species, modern barley (Hordeum vulgare) and a wild relative (Horedum spontaneum 5 - "HsP5"), with their insect pests and immediate environments. The wild species of barley in this system, HsP5, possesses partial-resistance to aphid pests; the first section of this talk will highlight the resistance mechanism(s) which have been identified within HsP5 and discuss the implications of insect resistance on additional trophic levels. The latter half of the talk will discuss how a changing climate effects this system, focusing mainly on the effect of drought and water limitation on the interactions between these two different plant species and their aphid pests.
The talk starts at 4pm with light refreshments available from 3.30pm.
For further information, please contact Jenni Stockan, Ecological Sciences, James Hutton Institute, Craigiebuckler, Aberdeen, AB15 8QH, UK. Office: +44 (0)1224 395 239, or Jennifer Slater, Ecological Sciences, James Hutton Institute, Invergowrie, Dundee, DD2 5DA.