Plant domestication is a powerful driver of ecological shifts in soil communities, yet its effects on tri-trophic interactions facilitating biological control involving entomopathogenic nematodes (EPNs) remain poorly understood. We investigated how the domestication of Vaccinium corymbosum (highbush blueberry) influences the distribution, composition, and host-location behavior of endemic EPN populations in cultivated blueberry fields and adjacent wild blueberry patches. We used quantitative PCR to characterize the EPN community and associated soil organisms across paired field sites. We also conducted olfactometer assays to test EPN behavioral responses to wild and domesticated plants with and without Anomala orientalis larvae. Our findings revealed a clear habitat partitioning, with Steinernema glaseri dominating cultivated fields and Steinernema spp. N7 and N10 being more prevalent in wild patches. Using the olfactometer assay, we observed distinct habitat-specific patterns: EPNs isolated from cultivated soils were more strongly attracted to domesticated blueberry roots, whereas those from wild soils responded preferentially to wild plants. Although neither group showed significant attraction to A. orientalis larvae alone, EPNs isolated from cultivated fields exhibited increased attraction to domesticated plants when insect larvae were present—consistent with a context-dependent ‘cry-for-help’ response. These findings suggest that domestication is likely to influence the structure and behavior of rhizosphere EPN communities, potentially by reinforcing long-term associations among plant genotypes, herbivores, and their natural enemies. Advancing our understanding of habitat-specific interactions will be essential to enhancing the specificity and efficacy of EPN-based biological control in agricultural systems. • Domestication alters entomopathogenic nematode (EPN) community in blueberry fields. • Cultivated soils are dominated by the EPN species Steinernema glaseri . • Wild soils harbor distinct endemic EPN species. • EPNs show habitat-specific attraction to plant roots. • Herbivore-infested roots enhance EPN attraction in domesticated plants.
Rivera et al. (Mon,) studied this question.