Chemical ecology

Chemical ecology studies how chemicals mediate interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environments, including effects on behavior, defense, and resource use.

Pheromone: A chemical released by an organism that affects behavior or physiology in members of the same species. Pheromones mediate communication among members of one species.
Integrated pest management: A strategy combining biological, cultural, physical, and chemical methods to manage pests while limiting harm. Ecological knowledge of signals and defenses can make pest control more targeted.
Semiochemical: A chemical substance that conveys information between organisms. Chemical ecology often classifies interaction-mediating compounds as semiochemicals.
Wolbachia: A genus of intracellular bacteria that infects many arthropods and some nematodes, often altering host reproduction. Its reproductive effects show how microbial chemistry can reshape host interactions.
Chemical diversity hypothesis: The hypothesis that greater chemical diversity in plants can reduce herbivore damage by complicating adaptation and host finding. It connects chemical variation to the stability of plant–herbivore interactions.
Allelopathy: Chemical effects of one plant, alga, or microbe on the growth or survival of another. Allelopathy shows how released chemicals shape competition between organisms.
Mating disruption: Pest control that uses synthetic sex pheromones to prevent animals from locating mates. Pheromone communication can be exploited to reduce reproduction without broad-spectrum insecticides.
Metabolite: A small molecule produced or transformed by metabolism in a living organism. Many ecological signals and defenses are metabolites or their derivatives.
Cantharidin: A toxic chemical produced by blister beetles and a few related insects. It is a well-known defensive compound with effects on predators and human tissues.
Plant–soil feedback: A process in which plants alter soil conditions and organisms, which then affect plant growth. Root chemicals can mediate feedbacks linking plants to soil communities.

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