First Record of Invasive Tawny Crazy Ant Nylanderia fulva (Mayr) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Continental Ecuador and Notes on Its Ecology in Sugarcane Crops

Pazmiño-Palomino, Alex; Mendoza, Juan Salvador; Brito-Vera, G A

doi:10.1007/s13744-019-00709-1

Cited by 3 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…by TCA resulted in damaged grasslands, which reduced the forage quality and value for cattle ( Zenner De Polania, 1990 ). Similarly, higher sugarcane aphid ( Melanaphis sacchari Zehntner) presence on sugarcane was reported in Ecuador, where large TCA populations tended these aphids ( Pazmino-Palomino, Mendoza & Brito-Vera, 2020 ). Previously, aphid injury towards sugarcane was considered low and aphid population sizes were controlled by parasitoid wasps and other natural enemies.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

“…Previously, aphid injury towards sugarcane was considered low and aphid population sizes were controlled by parasitoid wasps and other natural enemies. However, TCA tending reduced natural enemy presence ( Pazmino-Palomino, Mendoza & Brito-Vera, 2020 ), and resulted in increased sugarcane aphid populations. In these instances, interactions between two invasive pests ecologically facilitated aphid fitness and reduced crop health.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While sorghum aphids have already resulted in significant economic damage to grain sorghum crops ( Villanueva et al, 2014 ; Zapata et al, 2016 ), a potential mutualism between ants and these invasive aphids could increase pest population sizes, potentially resulting in greater damages to sorghum through reduced availability of nutrients, yield reduction, buildup of honeydew which results in sooty mold growth and reduced photosynthesis, and potential pathogen transmission ( Zapata et al, 2016 ; Zapata et al, 2018 ). TCA opportunistic tending behavior was recently reported to cause greater plant damage in sugarcane crops ( Pazmino-Palomino, Mendoza & Brito-Vera, 2020 ). In Florida, TCA was reported as a pest around the 1990s, and has opportunistically tended both native ( e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Quantifying the impacts of symbiotic interactions between two invasive species: the tawny crazy ant (Nylanderia fulva) tending the sorghum aphid (Melanaphis sorghi)

Holt

Malacrinò

Medina

2022

PeerJ

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The establishment of new symbiotic interactions between introduced species may facilitate invasion success. For instance, tawny crazy ant (Nylanderia fulva Mayr) is known to be an opportunistic tender of honeydew producing insects and this ants’ symbiotic interactions have exacerbated agricultural damage in some invaded regions of the world. The invasive sorghum aphid (Melanaphis sorghi Theobald) was first reported as a pest in the continental United States–in Texas and Louisiana–as recent as 2013, and tawny crazy ant (TCA) was reported in Texas in the early 2000s. Although these introductions are relatively recent, TCA workers tend sorghum aphids in field and greenhouse settings. This study quantified the tending duration of TCA workers to sorghum aphids and the impact of TCA tending on aphid biomass. For this study aphids were collected from three different host plant species (i.e., sugarcane, Johnson grass, and sorghum) and clone colonies were established. Sorghum is the main economic crop in which these aphids occur, hence we focused our study on the potential impacts of interactions on sorghum. Quantification of invasive ant-aphid interactions, on either stems or leaves of sorghum plants, were conducted in greenhouse conditions. Our results show that although these two invasive insect species do not have a long coevolutionary history, TCA developed a tending interaction with sorghum aphid, and aphids were observed excreting honeydew after being antennated by TCA workers. Interestingly, this relatively recent symbiotic interaction significantly increased overall aphid biomass for aphids that were positioned on stems and collected from Johnson grass. It is recommended to continue monitoring the interaction between TCA and sorghum aphid in field conditions due to its potential to increase aphid populations and sorghum plant damage.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 82%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Quantifying the impacts of symbiotic interactions between two invasive species: the tawny crazy ant (Nylanderia fulva) tending the sorghum aphid (Melanaphis sorghi)

Holt

Malacrinò

Medina

2022

PeerJ

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“…Nylanderia fulva has a native distribution along the Rio de La Plata basin and the southern portion of the Atlantic Coastal Forest biome [8]; including Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Argentina. This ant is considered a pest species in urban, agricultural, and natural/wildland areas and has been reported as introduced in Colombia, Ecuador, Panama, Venezuela, Mexico, and the United States [8][9][10][11][12][13][14]; with additional Nylanderia species reported in Colombia and Peru [15,16]. After the initial reports and identi cation of N. fulva in the US, little to no information was recorded about further range expansion or its impacts on urban and natural settings, suggesting that these rst reported propagules may have failed to establish.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How Homogenous is a Supercolony? High-Resolution Sequencing Revels Population Genetic Structure in the Introduced Range of Tawny Crazy Ant (Nylanderia fulva (Mayr): Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Holt,

Montoya-Lerma,

Calcaterra

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Background The tawny crazy ant (Nylanderia fulva (Mayr)) is native to South America and was first reported in the continental United States (US) in 1938. It was not until the 1990s in Florida and 2000s in Texas that this ant was considered a serious pest in the US. Tawny crazy ant (TCA) is currently considered an invasive pest in six US states. A limited number of low-density molecular markers have previously shown little genetic differentiation among Nylanderia fulva across their geographic distribution in the US. Results Using high-throughput sequencing we obtained high-density molecular markers, a total of 4,557 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), that provided increased resolution for detecting population genetic differences. There was genetic variation among tawny crazy ants in the US and Argentina. Additionally, there was substructure among some geographic locations in the US (i.e., Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, and Florida). Samples from Colombia and Perú were genetically very distant from N. fulva in Argentina and US, and thus they are likely potential cryptic species or belong to another cryptic species complex. Conclusion There is genetic differentiation observed between and within tawny crazy ants in Argentina and the US as well as among tawny crazy ants in the US. Locations associated with port cities in the US are most closely related to ants from Buenos Aires, Argentina. The higher levels of differentiation among other locations and Buenos Aires may be the result of the introduction of an unidentified genotype, admixture, a sample size artifact, or a combination of these factors. Although these tawny crazy ants may act as a supercolony across wide geographic scales, our results support that N. fulva is structured into genetically differentiated populations.

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“…Tawny crazy ants ( Nylanderia fulva ) are an invasive ant species of emerging importance. These ants, native to east-central South America ( 21 ), have been introduced into Columbia ( 22 , 23 ), Cuba ( 24 ), the US Virgin Islands ( 25 ), the southeastern United States ( 26 ), and Ecuador ( 27 ). N. fulva infestations reach extreme densities.…”

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confidence: 99%

Pathogen-mediated natural and manipulated population collapse in an invasive social insect

LeBrun

Jones

Plowes

et al. 2022

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Significance Invasive social insects are among the most damaging of invasive organisms and have proved universally intractable to biological control. Despite this, populations of some invasive social insects collapse from unknown causes. We report long-term studies demonstrating that infection by a microsporidian pathogen causes populations of a globally significant invasive ant to collapse to local extinction, providing a mechanistic understanding of a pervasive phenomenon in biological invasions: the collapse of established populations from endogenous factors. We apply this knowledge and successfully eliminate two large, introduced populations of these ants. More broadly, microsporidian pathogens should be evaluated for control of other supercolonial invasive social insects. Diagnosing the cause of unanticipated population collapse in invasive organisms can lead to applied solutions.

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First Record of Invasive Tawny Crazy Ant Nylanderia fulva (Mayr) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Continental Ecuador and Notes on Its Ecology in Sugarcane Crops

Cited by 3 publications

References 9 publications

Quantifying the impacts of symbiotic interactions between two invasive species: the tawny crazy ant (Nylanderia fulva) tending the sorghum aphid (Melanaphis sorghi)

Quantifying the impacts of symbiotic interactions between two invasive species: the tawny crazy ant (Nylanderia fulva) tending the sorghum aphid (Melanaphis sorghi)

How Homogenous is a Supercolony? High-Resolution Sequencing Revels Population Genetic Structure in the Introduced Range of Tawny Crazy Ant (Nylanderia fulva (Mayr): Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Pathogen-mediated natural and manipulated population collapse in an invasive social insect

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