Comparative analysis of loss of leaf areas between fertile and sterile leaves of Asplenium auritum Sw (Aspleniaceae)
Abstract
Plant-herbivore interactions are complex and relate, at the same time, feeding and reproduction in consumers, as well as pollination and seed dispersal of plants. In Aspleniaceae, a Ptherophyta family, sporangia develop on the adaxial surface of the leaf blade (sporophylls). To check if there is some mechanism that directs herbivory in sterile fern leaves (trophophylls), sparing the reproductive structures, this study compares the rate of leaf damage between sporophylls and trophophylls of of Asplenium auritum in an area of Atlantic Forest. The plant material collection was made in May 2012 when five plots of 4m x 4m oriented perpendicular to 15 meters from the forest edge were established, of which 4 sheets of each individual found in A. auritum were collected. The leaves were photographed for morphometric evaluation using ImageJ software and the t test was used for unpaired samples (p <0.05) using SPSS 17.0 software. The results showed no significant difference between the leaf area predated the A auritum. with and without spores (t = 1.4, p = 0.173). Future research may help in understanding the importance of the origin of these interactions and the reason that lead ferns to conduct such interactions between herbivory and reproduction and contribute to proposing conservation strategies.
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