Abronia and Tripterocalyx are sister genera of ~20 species in the family Nyctaginaceae. They are mostly confined to coastal beaches and dunes, desert sands, or weird high mountain areas (e.g. limestone). The majority are sticky and entrap sand, which defends them against most herbivores. Using the common Abronia-feeding caterpillars Hyles lineata (Sphingidae) and a leaf miner Lithariapteryx abroniaeella (Heliodinidae), Patrick Grof-Tisza, Rick Karban, Marj Weber, and I are asking questions about defensive trade-offs and evolution of defensive traits in this clade. I am also interested in the evolution of limited dispersal, pollinator movement and hybridization, and production of parthenocarpic fruit in the genus. 

Publications:

LoPresti, EF and R. Karban. (2016) Chewing sandpaper: grit, plant apparency and plant defense in sand-entrapping plants. Ecology. 97: 826-833

LoPresti, EF; Grof-Tisza, P.; Robinson, M.; Godfrey, J. & R. Karban. Ingestion of sand by a caterpillar: quantification and consequences. in press