Diet and seed removal rates by the harvester ants Pogonomyrmex rastratus and Pogonomyrmex pronotalis in the central Monte desert, Argentina

2006 ◽  
Vol 53 (1) ◽  
pp. 119-125 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. I. Pirk ◽  
J. Lopez de Casenave
Keyword(s):  
Seed Removal ◽  
Harvester Ants ◽  
Removal Rates ◽  
Monte Desert

scholarly journals Seed Removal Rates in Forest Remnants Respond to Forest Loss at the Landscape Scale

Forests ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 1144
Author(s):  
Alain Hambuckers ◽  
Franck Trolliet ◽  
Astrid Simon ◽  
Eliana Cazetta ◽  
Larissa Rocha-Santos
Keyword(s):  
Forest Cover ◽  
Removal Rate ◽  
Supply And Demand ◽  
Landscape Scale ◽  
Fast Method ◽  
Seed Removal ◽  
Removal Rates ◽  
Forest Remnants ◽  
Forested Landscapes ◽  
Plant Animal Interactions

Seed removal is a key component of seed dispersal and may be influenced by both landscape-scale and local attributes, and it has been used as an indicator of the intensity of interactions between ecosystem components. We examined how the seed removal rates, which integrate the activity of seed dispersers and seed predators, vary with landscape-scale forest cover. We collected data under 34 trees belonging to two zoochoric species (Helicostylis tomentosa (Poepp. and Endl.) J. F. Macbr. and Inga vera Willd.) in 17 remnants in the Brazilian Atlantic forest, with different percentages of forest cover. The seed removal rate was estimated using a fast method based on the abundance of intact fruits and fruit scraps on the ground. The amount of forest cover affected the rate of seed removal in a humpbacked shape, with a maximum seed removal rate at intermediate forest cover. Seed removal rates must be related to the amount of food resources offered and diversity of dispersers and predators in the region. In landscapes with intermediate forest amount, there is a better balance between supply and demand for fruits, leading to a higher seed removal rate than more deforested or forested landscape. Our results also show that local factors, such as crop size and canopy surface, together with forest cover amount, are also important to the removal rate, depending on the species. In addition, our results showed that plant–animal interactions are occurring in all fragments, but the health status of these forests is similar to disturbed forests, even in sites immersed in forested landscapes.

Influence of temporal fluctuations in seed abundance on the diet of harvester ants (Pogonomyrmexspp.) in the central Monte desert, Argentina

2009 ◽  
Vol 34 (8) ◽  
pp. 908-919 ◽  
Author(s):  
GABRIELA I. PIRK ◽  
JAVIER LOPEZ DE CASENAVE ◽  
RODRIGO G. POL ◽  
LUIS MARONE ◽  
FERNANDO A. MILESI
Keyword(s):  
Harvester Ants ◽  
Temporal Fluctuations ◽  
Monte Desert

Effect of plant cover on seed removal by rodents in the Monte Desert (Mendoza, Argentina)

2003 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 651-657 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paula A. Taraborelli ◽  
Mariana Dacar ◽  
Stella M. Giannoni
Keyword(s):  
Plant Cover ◽  
Seed Removal ◽  
Monte Desert

Seed Removal Rates Under Isolated Trees and Continuous Vegetation in Semiarid Thornscrub

2006 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 204-209 ◽  
Author(s):  
Enrique Jurado ◽  
Joel Flores ◽  
Anton G. Endress ◽  
Mercedes Flores ◽  
Eduardo Estrada ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seed Removal ◽  
Removal Rates ◽  
Isolated Trees

scholarly journals Remoción de Semillas en Hábitats Transformados: Pogonomyrmex barbatus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) y Cinco Especies de Cactáceas del Centro de México

Sociobiology ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 59 (1) ◽  
pp. 49
Author(s):  
Leticia Ríos-Casanova ◽  
Héctor Godínez-Álvarez ◽  
Gabriala Martínez Morales
Keyword(s):  
Human Activities ◽  
Removal Rate ◽  
Seed Removal ◽  
Foraging Activity ◽  
Harvester Ants ◽  
Pogonomyrmex Barbatus ◽  
Intermediate Transformation ◽  
Crop Field ◽  
A Site ◽  
Harsh Conditions

One of the main consequences of human activities in semiarid zones is the transformation of habitats. In this work we studied the effect of this transformation on seed removal of five cacti species by the harvester ant Pogonomyrmex barbatus in the Tehuacán-Cuicatlán valley, a semiarid zone in central Mexico. Seed removal was quantified at three sites which have been under the effect of human activities: an abandoned crop field (CCA), a site with evidence of current human activities (TAH), and a site inside a botanic garden ( JB). We hypothesized that sites which have been under intense human activities would have low rates of seed removal because they offer harsh conditions for harvester ants, reducing their foraging activity. Results showed that vegetation and surface soil characteristics of the sites studied are affecting the rates of seed removal of the five cacti species studied. The lowest seed removal rate was found at CCA, the most transformed site. In contrast with our hypothesis the highest seed removal was found at TAH, the site which represents the intermediate transformation condition, because this site still conserves some characteristics which permit intense foraging activity by harvester ants. We also found that the seed removal rate varied among the different cacti species studied. Seed of E. chiotilla had the highest removal rate, whereas O. decumbens had the lowest. Differences in seed removal rate could be associated with the high heterogeneity found in sites with intermediate levels of transformation. Another factor that must be considered is the external morphology of seeds since smaller seeds presented highest removal rates.

scholarly journals Disentangling factors controlling fruit and seed removal by rodents in temperate forests

2011 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 227-234 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ramón Perea ◽  
Alfonso San Miguel ◽  
Luis Gil
Keyword(s):  
Fruit Size ◽  
Preference Ranking ◽  
Seed Removal ◽  
Nutritional Properties ◽  
Removal Rates ◽  
Ilex Aquifolium ◽  
Fleshy Fruits ◽  
Fruit Choice ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Rodent Abundance

AbstractFleshy fruits fall on to the ground together with cleaned seeds previously ingested by primary dispersers, offering a wide range of fruits and seeds to the ground foragers. Although nutritional properties strongly differ between fruits and seeds, this different seed presentation (cleaned seeds versus seeds within the pulp) has not been addressed in seed removal studies. This study reports on the removal of fruits versus their seeds in five fleshy-fruited species in a temperate forest. We found that rodents removed most of the seeds and partially consumed most of the fruits, preferring seeds to fruits. Rodents bit the fruits to extract the seeds, leaving most of the pulp. We found a preference ranking for the seeds (Sorbus aucuparia>Ilex aquifolium>Sorbus aria>Rosa canina>Crataegus monogyna) but no preferences were found for the fruits, probably due to their similarities in pulp constituents. Seed and fruit choice were affected by chemical and physical properties and not by their size. The presence of alternative and preferred seeds (nuts) delayed the encounter of the fruits and seeds and diminished their removal rates. We found that higher rodent abundance is not necessarily associated with higher removal rates of fleshy fruits. Rodent abundance, fruit size and seed size are minor factors in the removal of fleshy fruits and their seeds. This study underlines that scatter-hoarding rodents are important removers of fleshy fruits and their seeds, producing a differential seed removal depending on the seed presentation (with or without pulp), the nutritional properties of the seeds (but not of the fruits) and the presence of alternative food.

scholarly journals Post-dispersal removal of seeds of pioneer species from five Panamanian forests

2005 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-84 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. A. Fornara ◽  
J. W. Dalling
Keyword(s):  
Soil Surface ◽  
Pioneer Species ◽  
Seed Removal ◽  
Seed Fate ◽  
Removal Rates ◽  
No Removal ◽  
Site Characteristics ◽  
Trema Micrantha ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Abundance And Distribution

Variation among forests in environmental and biotic conditions may strongly influence seed fate with important consequences for the abundance and distribution of plant species. Here we examine the post-dispersal seed removal rates of six pioneer species (Cecropia peltata, Miconia argentea, Luehea seemannii, Trema micrantha, Apeiba aspera and Jacaranda copaia) from the soil surface at five sites in Panama varying in elevation (0–1100 m) and seasonality (0–4 mo dry season). We compared removal rates of washed seeds placed in vertebrate exclosures, invertebrate exclosures, and unprotected controls in January and June. Overall, removal rates of unprotected seeds were similar among sites. Almost all seed removal could be attributed to litter ants in two subfamilies (Myrmicinae and Ponerinae). Little or no removal was recorded from invertebrate exclosures while vertebrate exclosures had no effect on removal either in lowland and montane forests. Seed removal rates were high for four animal-dispersed species (mean 45% removed over 2 d), whereas two wind-dispersed species were largely untouched (mean 2% removed). These results indicate that seed dispersal characteristics, rather than site characteristics, may be the strongest determinant of the post-dispersal seed fate of pioneers.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document