Meaning of domatium | Babel Free

Definitions

A chamber produced by a plant in which insects, mites, or fungi live.

Equivalents

Examples

“A domatium typically takes the form⟳ of a hollow under a leaf, or a system of tunnels in a thorn or stem. Ideally, it is a mutualistic adaptation and should not be confused with simple damage⟳ by a borer or gall-forming pest, although commonly there is no sharp distinction between domatia of value to the plant⟳ and galls caused by harmful aphids and mites, for example.”

“All are ordinary anatomical features of the plants that the ants exploit, apparently in a unilateral manner. In contrast, the domatia listed comprehensively in Table 14-1 do appear⟳ uniquely to serve⟳ as ant nests.”

“Although the earliest work⟳ on mites and leaf domatia was inspired by a belief that mites protected trees from fungal disease (O'Dowd and Willson 1989), mite–fungus–plant⟳ interactions received experimental attention only recently.”

“Domatia and extrafloral nectaries are plant⟳ structures that provide⟳ shelter⟳ and food to predaceous arthropods and thus affect⟳ herbivorous insects only indirectly.”

CEFR level