Home▸Ecology & Conservation Biology▸Herbivore-Induced Plant Volatiles Simulator

Herbivore-Induced Plant Volatiles Simulator

Place a caterpillar on a 3D plant and watch it release a herbivore-specific chemical plume (HIPVs) that recruits a parasitoid wasp — then compare against mechanical wind damage, which triggers no such signal and no predator response.

Ecology & Conservation Biology3DModerate60 FPS💨 Air & Wind

This simulator visualizes a tritrophic chemical-ecology interaction. A plant under attack from a chewing herbivore detects herbivore-specific chemical cues and releases a distinctive blend of herbivore-induced plant volatiles (HIPVs) into the air. Parasitoid wasps that specialize in hunting that herbivore track the plume upwind, locate the plant, and attack the pest — reducing further damage. Trigger mechanical (wind) damage instead to see that identical leaf tearing without an herbivore produces no meaningful plume and never attracts a wasp, showing the recruitment signal is tied to the herbivore's specific chemical signature rather than damage in general.

⚙ Under the hood

Place a caterpillar on a 3D plant and watch it detect herbivore-specific chemical cues and release a distinctive cyan HIPV plume that recruits a parasitoid wasp flying in along the plume gradient to attack the herbivore and stop the damage. Switch to mechanical wind damage to see identical leaf tearing produce only a brief grey dust puff — no HIPV plume and no wasp ever arrives, showing the recruitment signal is herbivore-specific rather than a generic damage alarm.

herbivore-induced plant volatilesHIPVtritrophic interactionparasitoid waspindirect plant defensechemical ecologyplant-insect interaction

3D · Three.js / WebGL renderer · 60 FPS target · runs fully client-side, no install