Interactions between ants, fruits and seeds in a restinga forest in south-eastern Brazil

Passos, Luciano; Oliveira, Paulo S.

doi:10.1017/s0266467403003298

Cited by 87 publications

(94 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…Desta forma, justifi ca-se um estudo sobre os fatores ambientais que afetam as comunidades de formigas em formações de restinga. As formigas, por exemplo, são organismos importantes na biologia de frutos e sementes em comunidades de restinga (Passos & Oliveira 2003). As características dessas formações, principalmente o solo pobre e arenoso, aliadas a sua localização, ao longo da costa brasileira, tornam as restingas ambientes muito ameaçados de degradação (Esteves & Lacerda 2000).…”

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Efeitos de fatores ambientais sobre a mirmecofauna em comunidade de restinga no Rio de Janeiro, RJ

Vargas¹,

Mayhé-Nunes²,

Queiroz³

et al. 2007

Neotrop. Entomol.

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-The effects of environmental factors on the richness, diversity and abundance of ants were studied in the Restinga da Marambaia, south coast of Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil. The samples were taken using pitfall traps in August/2004 (winter) and March/2005 (summer) in three different vegetation types: (1) herbaceous ridge palmoid (homogeneous habitat); (2) shrub dune thicket and (3) ridge forest (heterogeneous habitats). At each habitat a range of environmental attributes was recorded: soil temperature and humidity, percentage of soil covering by litter and litter depth. Ninety-two ant species belonging to 36 genera and eight subfamilies were recorded. Density of ant species and abundance varied signifi cantly between habitats and seasons; ant diversity varied only between habitats. Homogeneous habitat had lower ant species density, abundance and diversity than heterogeneous habitats. The two fi rst variables were positively correlated with litter depth and both were higher in summer than in winter samples. There were more species of Ponerinae and Ectatomminae in heterogeneous than in the homogeneous habitat, whereas the Formicinae species were more abundant in the later.KEY WORDS: Formicidae, ground-dwelling ant, Neotropical fauna, plant physiognomy RESUMO -A infl uência de fatores ambientais sobre a diversidade, riqueza e abundância de formigas em comunidade de restinga foi avaliada na Marambaia, litoral sul do estado do Rio de Janeiro. As amostras foram tomadas em agosto de 2004 (inverno) e março de 2005 (verão) em três fi sionomias vegetais: (1) vegetação herbácea fechada de cordão arenoso (habitat homogeneo), (2) arbustiva fechada de cordão arenoso e (3) fl oresta de cordão arenoso (habitats heterogeneos). Em cada formação foram medidos os seguintes atributos ambientais: temperatura e umidade do solo, cobertura do solo por serapilheira e profundidade da serapilheira. Noventa e duas espécies distribuídas em 36 gêneros e oito subfamílias foram coletadas. A densidade de espécies e a abundância variaram signifi cativamente com a fi sionomia e época de coleta; a diversidade apenas com a fi sionomia. O habitat homogêneo teve menor densidade de espécies, abundância e diversidade do que os habitats heterogêneos. As duas primeiras variáveis foram positivamente correlacionadas com a profundidade da serapilheira e ambas foram maiores na amostragem de verão do que na de inverno. Houve mais espécies de Ponerinae e Ectatomminae nos ambientes mais heterogêneos, enquanto que Formicinae foi mais abundante no ambiente homogêneo.

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Efeitos de fatores ambientais sobre a mirmecofauna em comunidade de restinga no Rio de Janeiro, RJ

Vargas¹,

Mayhé-Nunes²,

Queiroz³

et al. 2007

Neotrop. Entomol.

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“…during the day while, after 17:00, removal was continued by C. major and A. cephalotes. The genera observed transporting seeds in the pasturelands (Table 5) coincide with the functional ant guilds exploiting diaspores in flat, sandy forests, and humid tropical forests in the Brazilian lowlands [14,42]. In these habitats, small myrmicines as well as attine actively interacted with diaspores.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Removal of Nonmyrmecochorous Seeds by Ants: Role of Ants in Cattle Grasslands

Escobar-Ramírez

López

Henao

et al. 2012

Psyche: A Journal of Entomology

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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.

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“…No obstante las hormigas del género Pheidole recurren al reclutamiento masivo de obreras para remover la semilla al nido en el caso que estas sean grandes para ser removida por una hormiga (Itzkowitz & Haley, 1983;Escobar, Armbrecht, & Calle, 2007). En otros casos donde las semillas son grandes y con un gran eleosoma, arilo o pulpa carnosa rica en lípidos o ácidos grasos, las hormigas optan por retirar esta parte y dejan la semilla intacta en el sitio donde fue encontrada (Pizo & Oliveira, 2001;Passos & Oliveira, 2003;Christianini & Oliveira, 2010).…”

Section: Discussionunclassified

Contribución de Pheidole fallax y Ectatomma ruidum (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) en la dispersión y germinación de semillas en áreas rehabilitadas de la mina de carbón del Cerrejón, Colombia

Gutierrez-Rapalino

Haydar

2017

RBT

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Contribución deAbstract: Contribution of Pheidole fallax and Ectatomma ruidum (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) to the dispersion and germination of seeds in rehabilitated areas of the Cerrejón coal mine, Colombia. Seed dispersal is a key process in the re-establishment of vegetation on reclaimed lands. The aim of this study was to determine the contributions of the ant species Ectatomma ruidum and Pheidole fallax to seed dispersal and germination on reclaimed lands in the Cerrejón coal mine, Colombia. Four 6 x 40 m plots were installed in each area, in which the number of nests by species was counted and distances between closest nests of each species were measured. Five of the nests counted were chosen for seed extraction, and a nearby control sample was taken from each nest. In total, 295 nests were counted: 59 nests during the dry season and 236 nests during the rainy season, of which 84 belonged to P. fallax and 211 belonged to E. ruidum. A total of 21 304 seeds were found in nests and control samples, of which 19 349 were obtained from P. fallax nest refuse, and 318 were obtained from E. ruidum nests; 597 seeds were found in control samples. The number of seeds extracted from nests was significantly higher than the number of seeds removed from control samples. There was a significant difference between the number of seeds removed by P. fallax and the number of seeds removed by E. ruidum. The seed germination percentage from nests was higher than the percentage from seeds in control samples. In the case of P. fallax, the germination percentage was lower in control samples and higher in nests and refuse. The results suggest that the ant species E. ruidum and P. fallax may contribute to seed dispersal and re-establishment of vegetation in areas where they were found. These ants may thus significantly contribute to restoration processes in areas degraded by mining. Rev. Biol. Trop. 65 (2): 575-587. Epub 2017 June 01.

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Interactions between ants, fruits and seeds in a restinga forest in south-eastern Brazil

Cited by 87 publications

References 47 publications

Efeitos de fatores ambientais sobre a mirmecofauna em comunidade de restinga no Rio de Janeiro, RJ

Efeitos de fatores ambientais sobre a mirmecofauna em comunidade de restinga no Rio de Janeiro, RJ

Removal of Nonmyrmecochorous Seeds by Ants: Role of Ants in Cattle Grasslands

Contribución de Pheidole fallax y Ectatomma ruidum (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) en la dispersión y germinación de semillas en áreas rehabilitadas de la mina de carbón del Cerrejón, Colombia

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