Tobacco plants outsmart hungry caterpillars

Pity the tobacco hornworm caterpillar, which appears to have been outsmarted by its favourite food. Every time it feasts on tobacco leaves, it inadvertently converts molecules released by the plant into chemicals that call in the predatory big-eyed bug.
Like many plants, when tobacco is damaged – by hungry herbivores or otherwise – it gives off chemicals called green leaf volatiles (GLVs). These "SOS molecules" protect the plant by attracting predators that eat herbivores. ... "In effect, the caterpillar calls the police on itself," says Baldwin. Continued