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News From the Field

Fighting leaf and mandible


March 14, 2019

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Scientists have asked, "What is the primary driver in tropical forest diversity-competition for resources, or herbivore pests?" For the first time, University of Utah biologists compared the two mechanisms in a single study. The team analyzed how neighboring trees influence the growth and survival of nine coexisting species of the tree genus Inga in the Panama rainforest. They found that pests and the plant defenses against them drive diversity in tropical rainforests. Full Story

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University of Utah

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