Plants have a sneaky and sadistic trick to prevent caterpillars from munching on their leaves, a new study published Monday in the journal Nature Ecology and Evolution revealed. Researchers have discovered that plants secrete a chemical that makes them taste less delicious, leaving herbivorous caterpillars with the tough choice of eating less appealing foliage — or each other.
Caterpillars sometimes choose cannibalism. "When the chips are down, eating another caterpillar may not be a bad decision, [and] it turns out that the chips can be down if you find yourself on a plant that is heavily defended," said John Orrock, a co-author of the research.
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