Herbivore Resistance to Seaweed Chemical Defense: The Roles of Mobility and Predation Risk

Numerous small sedentary herbivores (mesograzers such as amphipods, small crabs, and gastropods) are resistant to seaweed secondary metabolites that deter larger, more mobile herbivorous fishes. In addition, specialist mesograzers experience reduced predation from fishes when living on seaweeds that produce these compounds. In this study we tested the hypothesis that generalist, as opposed to specialist, mesograzers can also benefit from reduced predation when they occupy chemically defended plants.