Ants are effective at moving seeds toward their nests, something that may benefit the seeds. We evaluated whether seed movements that may be useful for the rehabilitation of degraded pastures in Colombia can be enhanced by local ants. An artificial aril was prepared and then evaluated in six open cattle pasture farms. Twenty paper disks (each holding seeds with an artificial aril, honey, tuna oil, and control) were set up along linear transects at each farm, and monitored five times in 48 hours. A total of 340 out of 480 seeds were moved from the experimental units by ants. Seeds with tuna oil and an artificial aril were removed twice as frequently as the control and honey smeared seeds. Ectatomma ruidum, Solenopsis geminata, and Pheidole sp. removed the majority of seeds. Advantages of the artificial aril over tuna oil are discussed. This inexpensive technique can enhance seed movement by generalist ants in degraded pastures, likely contributing to regeneration and ecological rehabilitation.
Livestock production models prevailing in Colombian Andes are simplified treeless pastures for extensive ranching, with the consequent reduction of environmental services, such as seed dispersal, due to lack of primary dispersers, scarcity of adequate sites for seedling establishment and competition with grasses. This study evaluated if, in these harsh environments, ants can promote the colonization of arboreal species through directed dispersion of seeds towards the nests. Ten seeds of each species were offered to ants in six grazing pastures. Ants removed 25% of the seeds (1827) in 48 hours. Preference for arillated and small-to-medium sized seeds, such as Pithecellobium dulce, and Guazuma ulmifolia, was observed. Cyphomyrmex major, Ectatomma ruidum, Solenopsis geminata and Atta cephalotes were the key ant species in seed removal. It was concluded that functional ant groups present in the pastures could contribute to secondary dispersion of seeds with potential for restoration.
Land use management influence changes in biodiversity beyond the targeted species. Management practices in coffee plantations have shifted from coffee growing below accompanying (shade) trees, to intensified monocultures in which coffee grows fully exposed to the sun. Anthropogenic disturbance causes changes in species composition relative to adjacent natural patches and reduces their biotic heterogeneity. Here, we assessed the impact of coffee plantation management practices on the taxonomical, phylogenetic and functional composition of ant communities, an ecologically dominant group and crucial biological pest controller in these agroecosystems. We hypothesized that shade‐grown coffee plantations would harbour ant communities similar to those of nearby forest patches, but dissimilar to those of intensified monocultures. We surveyed ant diversity in eight shade‐grown coffee farms, eight intensive coffee monocultures and eight forest patches. We used a combination of active and passive sampling methods over two field campaigns spanning 6 months. Our results support our hypothesis for all diversity dimensions. Additionally, ant communities in intensified monocultures were taxonomically and functionally, but not phylogenetically, more homogeneous than those found in forest patches and shade‐grown plantations. Synthesis and applications. Our findings support the idea that practices in shade‐grown coffee plantations buffer the impoverishment of multiple diversity dimensions after forest conversion. Additionally, we identified that leaf‐litter depth and number of twigs mitigate ant diversity loss which, in turn, can favour the presence of potential biocontrol agents. By assessing and integrating multiple biodiversity dimensions into management strategies, farmers and interested parties can minimize future biodiversity and ecosystem service loss.
Local land‐use intensity and surrounding landscape complexity affect the diversity of local species. Ants are an important biocontrol agent of the coffee berry borer (CBB), the main coffee pest worldwide. Although intensification of coffee production and deforestation in the surrounding landscape may reduce ant diversity, α‐ and β‐diversity patterns of ants in coffee landscapes remain poorly understood. Ants foraging in coffee bushes were sampled, using tuna baits along an agricultural intensification gradient (forest, shaded coffee and sun coffee) in a Neotropical coffee landscape. We evaluated the differences in α and β components of ant richness, community differentiation and habitat specificity of ant communities, in response to land‐use type and the percentage of surrounding forest. We found that ant β‐diversity and community differentiation among plots were significantly reduced with coffee management intensity. The amount of forest border adjacent to coffee plantations did not affect α‐ or β‐diversity. Yet, ant habitat specificity in the forest increased with plots having greater amounts of forest border, although in sun coffee plantations, the opposite was found: plots with greater forest border decreased habitat specificity. We found that conserving forest at landscape scales enhanced β‐diversity, community differentiation and habitat specificity of ants in the forest. Loss of forest cover at landscape scales (i.e. predominance of sun coffee) may lead to biotic homogenisation of ant communities. In conclusion, landscape‐wide ant richness is important in terms of biological CBB control by conservation.
Las hormigas presentes en los cafetales podrían estar ejerciendo un control natural de la broca del café (BDC), como es el caso de Hypothenemus hampei al depredar a las poblaciones de esta plaga, que quedan en frutos abandonados al final de cada cosecha. El objetivo de esta investigación fue evaluar la capacidad depredadora de dos especies de hormigas (Solenopis picea y Crematogaster crinosa) sobre la broca del café con un atrayente en experimentos de campo. Para cada especie, se establecieron diez unidades experimentales (UE) con diez granos de café infestados con broca. Los granos infestados fueron colocados dentro de una malla de anjeo y colgados en árboles de café con un nido de hormigas. Para atraer las hormigas hacia los granos brocados estos fueron asperjados con una solución atrayente. Como testigo absoluto se usaron los mismos tratamientos con exclusión de hormigas y como testigo relativo granos brocados sin atrayente. La tasa de depredación de S. picea después de 24 h fue de 78,3%, seguida por C. crinosa con 34,3 %. El cebo atrayente incrementó en un 22 % la atracción de hormigas y depredación de estados biológicos de broca en cada UE, frente al tratamiento no asperjado. Los resultados muestran que las especies de hormigas evaluadas redujeron las poblaciones residuales de H. hampei; S. picea más que C. crinosa.
Ants can provide pest biocontrol for coffee crops; however, this ecosystem service may decline in intensively managed plantations due to the loss of nesting resources. Considering how to increase the number of ants, we studied if they nest in different types of artificial substrates attached to coffee bushes both in shade-grown and sun-grown coffee plantations. Three independent tests were conducted at some coffee plantations in southwestern Colombia with the purpose of answering the following questions: 1) Do ants nest in artificial substrates made from recyclable materials? 2) Do the types of substrate (materials and configuration) and coffee management (shade-grown vs. sun-grown coffee) affect colonization rates, richness, and identity of colonizing ants? 3) Does time affect substrate colonization rates? Each experiment independently compared different substrate materials and designs, in both shade and sun-grown coffee. Results showed preference of one of the substrates offered and higher nesting rates in shade-grown plantations. Eight ant species were found nesting in artificial substrates, most of them being arboreal generalists. A higher number of ant species colonized substrates in shade-grown plantations; however, the effect was not statistically significant. Nesomyrmex asper and Crematogaster spp. were always found nesting in both types of plantation. There was a trend to increase nesting activity with time in shade-grown coffee but not in sun-grown coffee. Evidence supports that offering artificial substrates enhances arboreal ant nesting in coffee plantations.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.