Uncommon specialization in a mutualism between a temperate herbaceous plant guild and an ant: are <i>Aphaenogaster</i> ants keystone mutualists?

Ness, J. H.; Morin, Douglas F.; Giladi, Itamar

doi:10.1111/j.1600-0706.2009.17430.x

Cited by 109 publications

(193 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…The experimental removal of ants from a southeastern temperate forest resulted in the aggregation of seedlings around H. arifolia maternal plants in the ant removal plots, likely due to the exclusion of A. rudis, the most common and important seed dispersing ant species in many eastern deciduous forests (Ness et al 2009, Warren et al 2010, Zelikova et al 2008). This result is consistent with the idea that ants (and A. rudis in particular) play a major role in seed dispersal in southwestern deciduous forests.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In southeastern temperate forests, Aphaenogaster rudis disperse the majority of ant-dispersed seeds and are considered to be keystone mutualists for myrmecochorous plants (Giladi 2004, Ness et al 2009, Zelikova et al 2008, Warren et al 2010. Indeed, in one recent study (Mitchell et al 2002), the single best correlate of myrmecochore abundance was the abundance of A. rudis, suggesting that these ants have a strong effect on myrmecochore fitness.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Though ant-seed dispersal mutualisms are generally considered to be diffuse, with multiple ant species interacting with seeds and dispersing them opportunistically, evidence is building that these interactions can depend disproportionately on one or a small suite of seed-dispersing ants (Giladi 2006, Gove et al 2007, Zelikova et al 2008, Ness et al 2009). In southeastern temperate forests, Aphaenogaster rudis disperse the majority of ant-dispersed seeds and are considered to be keystone mutualists for myrmecochorous plants (Giladi 2004, Ness et al 2009, Zelikova et al 2008, Warren et al 2010.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The mixed effects of experimental ant removal on seedling distribution, belowground invertebrates, and soil nutrients

Zelikova

Sanders²,

Dunn

2011

Ecosphere

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Abstract. Ants are ubiquitous members of most forest communities, where they disperse seeds, prey on other species, and influence the flow of nutrients. Their effects are often described as substantial, but few studies to date have simultaneously examined how the presence of ants affects both above and belowground processes. In this study, we experimentally reduced ant abundance in a suite of deciduous forest plots in northern Georgia, USA to assess the effects of ants on the spatial distribution of a common understory plant species, Hexastlylis arifolia, the structure of soil mesofaunal communities, and soil nitrogen dynamics. Over the course of several years, the removal of ants led to significant spatial aggregation of H. arifolia seedlings near the parent plant, most likely due to the absence of the keystone seed dispersal species, Aphaenogaster rudis. Seedling emergence was higher in ant removal plots, but seedling aggregation did not affect first or second year seedling mortality. Ammonium concentrations were 103 higher in ant removal plots relative to control plots where ants were present in the first year of the study, but this increase disappeared in the second and third years of the study. The effects of ant removal on the soil mesofauna were mixed: removal of ants apparently did not affect the abundance of Collembola, but the abundance of oribatid mites was significantly higher in ant removal plots by year two of the study. Taken together, these results provide some of the first experimental evidence of the diverse direct and indirect effects of ants on both above and belowground processes in forest ecosystems and demonstrate the potential consequences of losing an important seed dispersing ant species for the plants they disperse.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The mixed effects of experimental ant removal on seedling distribution, belowground invertebrates, and soil nutrients

Zelikova

Sanders²,

Dunn

2011

Ecosphere

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“…Both plants depend on ants for propagule dispersal and neither produce clonal offspring [33,34]. This guild of ant-dispersed herbs comprises a great part of plant species richness in southeastern US forests [35][36][37].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The shape of things to come: woodland herb niche contraction begins during recruitment in mesic forest microhabitat

Warren

Bradford

2010

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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Natural abundance is shaped by the abiotic requirements and biotic interactions that shape a species' niche, yet these influences are rarely decoupled. Moreover, most plant mortality occurs during early life stages, making seed recruitment critical in structuring plant populations. We find that natural abundance of two woodland herbs, Hexastylis arifolia and Hepatica nobilis, peaks at intermediate resource levels, a pattern probably formed by concurrent abiotic and biotic interactions. To determine how this abundance patterning reflects intrinsic physiological optima and extrinsic biotic interactions, we translocate adults and seeds to novel locations across experimentally extended abiotic gradients. These experiments indicate that the plant distributions probably reflect biotic interactions as much as physiological requirements, and that adult abundance provides a poor indication of the underlying niche requirements. The positive response exhibited by adult transplants in the wettest conditions is offset by increased fungal attack on buried seeds consistent with peak natural abundance where soil moisture is intermediate. This contraction of niche space is best described by Connell's model-species are limited by physiological tolerances where resources are low and biotic interactions where resources are high.

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“…Myrmecochory is considered a generalized mutualism [29,30], but recent studies suggest that there is large variation in the quality of dispersal services provided by different ant species. Certain ant species belonging to a guild of scavenging, omnivorous ants act as high-quality dispersers, and often play a disproportionately large role in seed dispersal [30][31][32][33].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mutualism between co-introduced species facilitates invasion and alters plant community structure

et al. 2015

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Generalized mutualisms are often predicted to be resilient to changes in partner identity. Variation in mutualism-related traits between native and invasive species however, can exacerbate the spread of invasive species ('invasional meltdown') if invasive partners strongly interact. Here we show how invasion by a seed-dispersing ant (Myrmica rubra) promotes recruitment of a co-introduced invasive over native ant-dispersed (myrmecochorous) plants. We created experimental communities of invasive (M. rubra) or native ants (Aphaenogaster rudis) and invasive and native plants and measured seed dispersal and plant recruitment. In our mesocosms, and in laboratory and field trials, M. rubra acted as a superior seed disperser relative to the native ant. By contrast, previous studies have found that invasive ants are often poor seed dispersers compared with native ants. Despite belonging to the same behavioural guild, seed-dispersing ants were not functionally redundant. Instead, native and invasive ants had strongly divergent effects on plant communities: the invasive plant dominated in the presence of the invasive ant and the native plants dominated in the presence of the native ant. Community changes were not due to preferences for coevolved partners: variation in functional traits of linked partners drove differences. Here, we show that strongly interacting introduced mutualists can be major drivers of ecological change.

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Uncommon specialization in a mutualism between a temperate herbaceous plant guild and an ant: are Aphaenogaster ants keystone mutualists?

Cited by 109 publications

References 55 publications

The mixed effects of experimental ant removal on seedling distribution, belowground invertebrates, and soil nutrients

The mixed effects of experimental ant removal on seedling distribution, belowground invertebrates, and soil nutrients

The shape of things to come: woodland herb niche contraction begins during recruitment in mesic forest microhabitat

Mutualism between co-introduced species facilitates invasion and alters plant community structure

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