Imagine two different species of caterpillar are feeding on an N. attenuate plant. One of these species is M. sexta. How can this plant differentiate between M. sexta (which are unaffected by the plant's usual chemical defenses) and the other caterpillar species?

It is very likely that M. sexta is more captain of the plant than the other species that don't tolerate the chemical defense of the plant. It may also be common to find them without problem in the leaves and near the glands that exude the defenses of the plant. Finally when ingesting the leaves with the chemical compounds it is very common that M. sexta now contains these substances in its body. There are reports that this species feeds on tobacco plants that contain nicotine and by consuming the plant they activate a specific gene responsible for the secretions of the substance, this moves away from caterpillar its predators.