Publications

The study describes two new gall-inducing Caloptilia species from New Caledonia, reveals their unique biology and evidence for possible within-host sympatric speciation, doubles the known number of gall-inducing gracillariids, and highlights both the underexplored diversity and the conservation importance of Parc des Grandes Fougères.

The comparative analysis of gall wasp venom gland apparatus revealed that the evolution of gall induction is associated with a massive enlargement of this organ, suggesting a role of venom in gall induction.

The tissues of the translucent oak gall have a pH between 2 and 3, making it among the lowest pH levels found in plant tissues. We suggest this may be a new defense mechanism against the galler’s enemies.

Ants disperse oak galls of some cynipid wasp species similarly to how they disperse seeds with elaiosomes.

The study presents the barcode library of 92% of the European species of Gracillariidae.

The description of the life-style of the Gracillariid Caloptilia cecidophora revealed that its larvae start by making a leaf-mine before to induce a gall. The modification on larval instars number and growth rate suggest a strong evolutionary pressure towards the reduction of the duration of the leaf-mining phase.

Similarly to galls, the leaf-mining moth Borboryctis euryae is capable to induce a constant renewal of the plant tissues within its leaf-mine, allowing its larvae to extend their feeding period within the mine.

We investigated the potential effect of the invasive moth Spodoptera littoralis on the native tri-trophic interactions between the cabbage, the butterfly Pieris brassicae and its parasitoids. We found that whether a co-infestation of both lepidopteran species could confuse the host detection of naïve parasitoids, the learning capacities of those parasitoids rapidly dissipate the confusion over the time.

The leaf-mining moth Phyllonorycter blancardella maintains photosynthetic during leaf senescence, a process called “green islands” that may be caused by cytokinins produced by the insect larva. We analyzed the different classes of cytokinins in the larva and in the plant tissues in contact with it to identify the type of cytokinins that are produced by the insect.

The comparison of the oral secretions of hematophagous and herbivorous arthropods revealed they both contain proteins that inhibit “early danger signals” emitted rapidly when the host tissues -animal or plant- are damaged. Indeed, animal or plant share the same “early danger signals”, extracellular ATP, calcium ions and hydrogen peroxyde.