Pollen Eating, Storing, and Spitting by Ants

Urbani, C. Baroni; Andrade, M. L. de

doi:10.1007/s001140050392

Cited by 34 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…N is difficult to access for turtle ants, given that, in their diet, it is either physically well-protected by a tough cell wall, like pollen [48, 131], or found in animal waste-based recalcitrant molecules, including uric acid or urea [44,49,132] (Fig 6A). Because immature insects require N to a greater extent than adult insects [133, 134], we hypothesized that turtle ant larval symbionts would encode genes for N-fixation and/or recycling of N wastes.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

In their sister’s footsteps: Taxonomic divergence obscures substantial functional overlap among the metabolically diverse symbiotic gut communities of adult and larval turtle ants

Béchade

Sanders

et al. 2021

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Gut bacterial symbionts can support animal nutrition by facilitating digestion and providing valuable metabolites. While the composition of gut symbiont communities shifts with host development in holometabolous insects, changes in symbiotic roles between immature and adult stages are not well documented, especially in ants. Here, we explored the metabolic capabilities of microbiomes sampled from herbivorous turtle ant (Cephalotes sp.) larvae and adult workers through genomic and metagenomic screenings and targeted in vitro metabolic assays. We reveal that larval guts harbor bacterial symbionts from the Enterobacteriales, Lactobacillales and Rhizobiales orders, with impressive metabolic capabilities, including catabolism of plant and fungal recalcitrant fibers common in turtle ant diets, and energy-generating fermentation. Additionally, several members of the specialized turtle ant adult gut microbiome, sampled downstream of an anatomical barrier that dams large food particles, show a conserved potential to depolymerize many dietary fibers and other carbohydrates. Symbionts from both life stages have the genomic capacity to recycle nitrogen, synthesize amino acids and B-vitamins, and perform several key aspects of sulfur metabolism. We also document, for the first time in ants, an adult-associated Campylobacterales symbiont with an apparent capacity to anaerobically oxidize sulfide, reduce nitrate, and fix carbon dioxide. With help of their gut symbionts, including several bacteria likely acquired from the environment, turtle ant larvae appear as an important component of turtle ant colony digestion and nutrition. In addition, the conserved nature of the digestive, energy-generating, and nutritive capacities among adult-enriched symbionts suggests that nutritional ecology of turtle ant colonies has long been shaped by specialized, behaviorally-transferred gut bacteria with over 46 million years of residency.

show abstract

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

In their sister’s footsteps: Taxonomic divergence obscures substantial functional overlap among the metabolically diverse symbiotic gut communities of adult and larval turtle ants

Béchade

Sanders

et al. 2021

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Most species are omnivorous [169]. However, there are also predator species [170], phytophagous [171][172][173], detritivorous (feeding on decaying organic matter, thereby accelerating the decomposition process) [174], as well as species that feed on honeydew [175], pollen [176], extrafloral nectar, and glandular corpuscles [177][178][179].…”

Section: Dryinidaementioning

confidence: 99%

Soil Arthropods in the Douro Demarcated Region Vineyards: General Characteristics and Ecosystem Services Provided

et al. 2021

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Viticulture is one of the oldest and most profitable forms of agriculture; it is also one of the most intensive farming systems. As intensive cultivation threatens the environment, there is increasing interest in the concept of sustainability within the wine industry, as well as new business opportunities, as customers begin to pay more attention to environmental and sustainability issues. Recognizing the key role of soil quality in environmentally and economically sustainable viticulture makes it essential to understand better soil arthropod communities, given their crucial functions in maintaining soil quality and health. The ‘Douro Demarcated Region’ (DDR) in northern Portugal offers good potential, in regards to biodiversity, due to its significant areas of non-crop habitats. This work aims to compile information on soil arthropod communities (both soil surface and soil-living) collected in the DDR vineyard agroecosystems. A description of the ecosystem services provided by them, as a basis for the development and implementation of sustainable viticulture systems, is also an objective of this work. An important set of soil arthropods necessary for the delivery of vital ecosystem services for viticulture, with particular reference to supporting and regulating services, occurred in this ecosystem. Eight classes were chiefly represented in a sample of about 167,000 arthropod specimens: Arachnida, Chilopoda, Diplopoda, Entognatha, Insecta, Malacostraca, Pauropoda, and Symphyla. The most representative were Entognatha and Insecta in soil-surface arthropods, and Arachnida and Entognatha in soil-living arthropods. The presence of recognized groups as bioindicators in agroecosystems, such as soil quality indicators, is also revealed. This knowledge is expected to contribute to a more efficient and sustainable management of the viticultural ecosystem.

show abstract

“…It is rich in nutrients, with protein levels ranging from 2.5% to 60%, but it also contains various amino acids, lipids, carbohydrates, and vitamins (Roulston & Cane 2000). While it is common in the diets of many insect groups (Wäckers et al 2005), pollen is rarely exploited by ants (Baroni-Urbani & de Andrade 1997;Creighton 1963Creighton , 1967Creighton & Nutting 1965;Wang & Tang 1994;Czechowski et al 2008Czechowski et al , 2011. For long time ants were considered to be only harmful (e.g., they consume floral nectar, deter true pollinators, cause damage to flowers) or neutral at best for pollination (see Galen & Butchart 2003;Ness 2006;de Vega et al 2009).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Competitive pressure by territorials promotes the utilization of unusual food source by subordinate ants in temperate European woodlands

Erős

Maák

Markó

et al. 2020

Ethology Ecology & Evolution

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In the presence of territorial dominant ant species, lower-ranked ants change their foraging strategy by shifting their activity in time and space and by switching to suboptimal food sources. Although important for many insect species, pollen is a rarely used food source by ants. Occasional pollen consumption was demonstrated only in a handful of ant species that are mainly lower-ranked in the competitive hierarchy. We hypothesized that the consumption of pollen by subordinate ants might be enhanced by competitive pressure exerted by dominant species. In the frame of the current study, we assessed the food preference of ant species within a supercolony of the territorial wood ant Formica polyctena by offering them pollen and animal protein baits. Subordinate ant species, especially Myrmica ants, exploited both pollen and animal protein, while F. polyctena foraged only for animal protein. The Myrmica ants exploited pollen sources more intensively on plots where F. polyctena dominated animal protein baits, thus interspecific competition was stronger. As suggested by our study, under suboptimal conditions, where food availability is hindered, e.g. by the presence of superior competitors, pollen can, indeed, be used as a food source by subordinate ants.

show abstract

Pollen Eating, Storing, and Spitting by Ants

Cited by 34 publications

References 0 publications

In their sister’s footsteps: Taxonomic divergence obscures substantial functional overlap among the metabolically diverse symbiotic gut communities of adult and larval turtle ants

In their sister’s footsteps: Taxonomic divergence obscures substantial functional overlap among the metabolically diverse symbiotic gut communities of adult and larval turtle ants

Soil Arthropods in the Douro Demarcated Region Vineyards: General Characteristics and Ecosystem Services Provided

Competitive pressure by territorials promotes the utilization of unusual food source by subordinate ants in temperate European woodlands

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About