# Time to Eat Your Vegetables: The Role of Circadian Clocks in Insect Herbivory

## TL;DR

This review explores how circadian clocks in insects and plants influence when insects feed on plants, and how this knowledge can improve pest control.

## Contribution

The paper provides a comprehensive review of how circadian rhythms in both insects and plants regulate herbivory and its implications for pest management.

## Key findings

- Circadian clocks in insects and plants influence the timing of herbivory.
- Understanding these rhythms can lead to more sustainable pest control strategies.
- Insect feeding behavior is governed by their internal clocks and plant rhythms.

## Abstract

Many living organisms have internal circadian clocks that not only help them keep in sync with daily rhythms in their environment but also schedule their bodily functions and behaviors. In this review, we look at how such clocks influence when insect feed on plants and how this knowledge could help us manage pests more effectively. We start by discussing insect–plant interactions and the damage that insects cause to crops. Then, we describe the circadian clocks of insects and plants and how the rhythms that they generate shape feeding behavior. Finally, we explore recent research on the timing of insects feeding on plants and discuss how such interventions could lead to better, more sustainable pest control strategies.

Insects exhibit a range of ecological relationships with plants, including pollination, seed dispersal, parasitism, predation, and herbivory. Interactions between insects and plants are shaped by internal daily timekeeping systems in both sets of organisms termed circadian clocks. This review describes the impact of the circadian clocks of insects and plants on herbivory, which is highly relevant not only to natural ecosystems, but also to agriculture and forest management. Following an introduction to the circadian clocks of plants and insects, we discuss the circadian organization of relevant aspects of plant metabolism and defense. Next, we describe how insect clocks govern herbivory-associated physiology and behavior before exploring how rhythmic processes in plants and insects interact to temporally control herbivory. Finally, we describe how insights from the clock control of herbivory may inform pest management strategies and what future research in this area may contribute.