Over several last years, I (K.Sam) was collaborating on the larger project focusing on the insect herbivory, predation, and leaf traits of oaks. I managed two study sites, near Budejovice and near to my home village in Chodska Lhota. I.e., the two sites collected in 2020 as well as 2021 in Czech Republic. This project led by Bastien Castagneyrol led to another publication, this time focusing on leaf phenolics and theri pattern along latitudinal gradient.

In this experiment, a combination of field work and laboratory feeding experiment were combined. The main finding is that while the concentration of lignin, flavonoids, and total phenolics increased significantly with temperature, both field herbivory and weight of spongy moth (Lymantria dispar L.) larvae were negatively influenced by temperature. Lignin concentration positively influenced the weight of spongy moth larvae whereas it had no effect on field herbivory.

I am happy that I was able to join the project, and thankful to the first author Elena Valdés‑Correcher for pushing this forward.

Full citation: Valdés-Correcher, E., Kadiri, Y., Bourdin, A., Mrazova, A., Bălăcenoiu, F., Branco, M., … & Castagneyrol, B. (2025). Effects of climate on leaf phenolics, insect herbivory, and their relationship in pedunculate oak (Quercus robur) across its geographic range in Europe. Oecologia, 207(4), 1-13.