Effect of treefall gaps on the patchiness and species richness of Neotropical ant assemblages

Oecologia ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 116 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 191-201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald H. Feener Jr. ◽  
Eugene W. Schupp
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Ant Assemblages ◽  
Treefall Gaps

Latitudinal patterns in European ant assemblages: variation in species richness and body size

Oecologia ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 95 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-37 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Hall Cushman ◽  
John H. Lawton ◽  
Bryan F. J. Manly
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Body Size ◽  
Ant Assemblages ◽  
Latitudinal Patterns

scholarly journals Effects of the Trophobiont HerbivoreCalloconophora pugionata(Hemiptera) on Ant Fauna Associated withMyrcia obovata(Myrtaceae) in a Montane Tropical Forest

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberth Fagundes ◽  
Kleber Del-Claro ◽  
Sérvio Pontes Ribeiro
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Species Diversity ◽  
Tropical Forest ◽  
Host Plant ◽  
Atlantic Forest ◽  
Main Hypothesis ◽  
Ant Assemblages ◽  
Montane Tropical Forest ◽  
Positive Effect ◽  
Dominant Ant

Many studies have investigated the mechanisms behind the structure of arboreal ant assemblages. In this study, the objective was to evaluate the effect of availability of honeydew-producing colonies ofCalloconophora pugionata(Membracidae) on the structure of ant assemblages associated with the host plantMyrcia obovata(Myrtaceae) in an Atlantic forest of Minas Gerais (Brazil). Our experiment consisted in a gradual exclusion of hemipteran colonies out of the host plant crown and further record of the ant assemblage response (species richness, composition, and occurrence) to the presence and density of treehopper colonies. The hypothesis was that an increase in the number of trophobiont herbivores results in an increase in tending ant occurrence but a reduction in ant species diversity. Results corroborated our main hypothesis: membracids had a positive effect on the occurrence of ants but negative on species richness. Overall insect occurrence was also reduced with increasing inC. pugionatacolonies, probably due to strengthening dominant ant species territory sizes and intensification of patrolling.

Energy, Density, and Constraints to Species Richness: Ant Assemblages along a Productivity Gradient

2000 ◽  
Vol 155 (2) ◽  
pp. 280-293 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Kaspari ◽  
Sean O'Donnell ◽  
James R. Kercher
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Energy Density ◽  
Ant Assemblages ◽  
Productivity Gradient

scholarly journals Changes in Epigaeic Ant Assemblage Structure in the Amazon during Successional Processes after Bauxite Mining

Sociobiology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 68 (1) ◽  
pp. 4973
Author(s):  
Geraldo Wilson Fernandes ◽  
Tate C. Lana ◽  
Carla R. Ribas ◽  
Jose Henrique Schoereder ◽  
Ricardo Solar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Ground Cover ◽  
Ecological Succession ◽  
Sampling Effort ◽  
Pitfall Traps ◽  
Bauxite Mining ◽  
Mining Areas ◽  
Ant Assemblages ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Advanced Stages

Environmental impact studies often involve monitoring and using bioindicators to evaluate the restoration stage of impacted areas. We aimed to assess ant assemblages’ response to the ecological succession of previously disturbed areas in the Brazilian Amazon. We sampled epigeic ant assemblages in five bauxite mining areas, representing different restoration stages, and compared them with two pristine areas. We also compared trends in species richness at the same mine site investigated 14 years earlier. Ten pitfall traps and four Winkler samples of litter were taken along a 100-m transect in each area. We expected that ant species richness would increase with the amelioration in habitat condition (i.e., environmental surrogates of ecological succession, including litter depth, soil penetrability, the circumference of trees, the distance of trees to adjacent trees, and percentage of ground cover). We also compared the efficacy of both sampling methods. Due to more significant sampling effort, pitfall traps captured more ant species than Winkler sacks. However, Winkler samples’ addition allowed the collection of more cryptic species than by pitfall traps alone. We sampled a total of 129 ant species, with increases in ant species richness in more mature rehabilitation. Nevertheless, similarity analysis indicated a significant difference between ant assemblages of rehabilitated areas and pristine ones. Assemblages differed mainly by the presence of specialist and rare species, found only in pristine plots. Rehabilitated areas exhibited a significant increase in tree circumference as they reached more ecologically advanced stages, which contributed to increasing ant species richness. These trends and comparison with the earlier study indicate that although there are favorable increases in ant species richness, in terms of species composition, rehabilitated areas were far from achieving an ant assemblage composition or environmental status that closely resembles pristine areas.

scholarly journals Ant Assemblage Structure in a Secondary Tropical Dry Forest: The Role of Ecological Succession and Seasonality

Sociobiology ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 64 (3) ◽  
pp. 261 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tatianne Gizelle Marques ◽  
Mário Marcos Espírito-Santo ◽  
Frederico Siqueira Neves ◽  
José Henrique Schoereder
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Tropical Dry Forest ◽  
Dry Forest ◽  
Biological Mechanisms ◽  
Ant Assemblages ◽  
Β Diversity ◽  
Advanced Stages ◽  
Successional Stages ◽  
Late Stages

This study identified the main biological mechanisms governing the diversity of ants on different ecological time scales. Ants were sampled in 15 plots distributed in early, intermediate and late stages of succession (five plots per stage) at the Parque Estadual da Mata Seca, Brazil. At each sample point, unbaited pitfall traps were installed in hypogaeic, epigaeic and arboreal strata. We collected 95 ant species from 26 genera and nine subfamilies. Our results indicated that there was an increase in species richness in advanced stages of succession. We also observed that ant assemblages were different among successional stages. For the arboreal and epigaeic strata, species richness did not change with succession progression, but species composition of these two strata differed among successional stages. Unlike to arboreal and epigaeic ants, hypogaiec ant species richness was higher in the intermediate and late stages of succession and the composition of hypogaeic ants differed among successional stages. Similarity between ant species foraging in arboreal and epigaeic strata decreases with succession progression and β-diversity was higher in advanced successional stages. Additionally, species richness was higher in the dry season, whereas the composition of ant assemblages did not change between seasons. A considerable fraction of the ant assemblage was found only in advanced stages of succession, demonstrating the importance of secondary habitats in maintaining biodiversity in dry forests.

scholarly journals Effects of Urbanization on the Diversity, Abundance, and Composition of Ant Assemblages in an Arid City

2019 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 836-846 ◽  
Author(s):  
Javier G Miguelena ◽  
Paul B Baker
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Arid Regions ◽  
Functional Group ◽  
Landscape Heterogeneity ◽  
Urban Ecosystems ◽  
Colony Growth ◽  
Limiting Factor ◽  
Habitat Types ◽  
Ant Assemblages ◽  
Ant Diversity

AbstractCities within arid regions make up a significant but understudied subset of the urban ecosystems of the world. To assess the effects of urbanization, fragmentation, and land-use change in an arid city, we sampled the ant assemblages in three habitat types in Tucson, Arizona: irrigated neighborhood parks, urban desert remnants, and preserved desert. We analyzed the abundance, species richness, evenness, as well as the species and functional group composition of ant assemblages. We found no significant differences in species richness or evenness. However, irrigated parks had significantly greater ant abundances. Although some exotic species were present in the urban habitats, they did not have significant effects on ant diversity. Ant assemblages from all three habitat types were distinct from each other in their composition. Irrigated parks included a significantly higher proportion of species typically found in cooler and wetter climates. The differences in abundance and species composition between irrigated parks and the other habitats are likely the effect of irrigation removing water as a limiting factor for colony growth and increasing resource availability, as well as producing a localized cooling effect. Our results show that arid urban ecosystems may include considerable biodiversity, in part thanks to increased landscape heterogeneity resulting from the irrigation of green areas.

scholarly journals Spatial patterns of species richness and nestedness in ant assemblages along an elevational gradient in a Mediterranean mountain range

PLoS ONE ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. e0204787 ◽  
Author(s):  
Omar Flores ◽  
Javier Seoane ◽  
Violeta Hevia ◽  
Francisco M. Azcárate
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Spatial Patterns ◽  
Elevational Gradient ◽  
Mountain Range ◽  
Ant Assemblages ◽  
Mediterranean Mountain Range

scholarly journals Urban habitat complexity affects species richness but not environmental filtering of morphologically-diverse ants

PeerJ ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
pp. e1356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Ossola ◽  
Michael A. Nash ◽  
Fiona J. Christie ◽  
Amy K. Hahs ◽  
Stephen J. Livesley
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Habitat Complexity ◽  
Morphological Traits ◽  
Environmental Filtering ◽  
Urban Ecosystems ◽  
Low Complexity ◽  
Urban Habitat ◽  
High Complexity ◽  
Natural Ecosystems ◽  
Ant Assemblages

Habitat complexity is a major determinant of structure and diversity of ant assemblages. Following the size-grain hypothesis, smaller ant species are likely to be advantaged in more complex habitats compared to larger species. Habitat complexity can act as an environmental filter based on species size and morphological traits, therefore affecting the overall structure and diversity of ant assemblages. In natural and semi-natural ecosystems, habitat complexity is principally regulated by ecological successions or disturbance such as fire and grazing. Urban ecosystems provide an opportunity to test relationships between habitat, ant assemblage structure and ant traits using novel combinations of habitat complexity generated and sustained by human management. We sampled ant assemblages in low-complexity and high-complexity parks, and high-complexity woodland remnants, hypothesizing that (i) ant abundance and species richness would be higher in high-complexity urban habitats, (ii) ant assemblages would differ between low- and high-complexity habitats and (iii) ants living in high-complexity habitats would be smaller than those living in low-complexity habitats. Contrary to our hypothesis, ant species richness was higher in low-complexity habitats compared to high-complexity habitats. Overall, ant assemblages were significantly different among the habitat complexity types investigated, although ant size and morphology remained the same. Habitat complexity appears to affect the structure of ant assemblages in urban ecosystems as previously observed in natural and semi-natural ecosystems. However, the habitat complexity filter does not seem to be linked to ant morphological traits related to body size.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document