Phosphorus Limits Tropical Rain Forest Litter Fauna

The stoichiometry of resources may explain bottom-up regulation of higher trophic levels. We tested the effects of soil and litter nutrient stoichiometry on the invertebrate litter fauna of a Costa Rican tropical rain forest. Animal densities were estimated from 15 sites across a phosphorus gradient. The density of the invertebrate litter fauna varied considerably, and was strongly tied to soil and litter phosphorus concentrations. An increase in phosphorus concentrations corresponded with an equally proportionate increase in animal densities. Natural variation in nutrient levels can thus serve as a predictor of density in a highly diverse tropical animal community.     

Impact of Flooding on the Species Richness, Density and Composition of Amazonian Litter-Nesting Ants

Litter-nesting ants are diverse and abundant in tropical forests, but the factors structuring their communities are poorly known. Here we present results of the first study to examine the impact of natural variation in flooding on a highly diverse (21 genera, 77 species) litter-nesting ant community in a primary Amazonian forest. Fifty-six 3 × 3 m plots experiencing strong variation in flooding and twenty-eight 3 × 3 m terra firme plots were exhaustively searched for litter-nesting ants to determine patterns of density, species richness and species composition. In each plot, flooding, litter depth, twig availability, canopy cover, plant density, percent soil nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus were measured. Degree of flooding, measured as flood frequency and flood interval, had the strongest impact on ant density in flooded forest. Flooding caused a linear decrease in ant abundance, potentially due to a reduction of suitable nesting sites. However, its influence on species richness varied: low-disturbance habitat had species richness equal to terra firme forest after adjusting for differences in density. The composition of ant genera and species varied among flood categories; some groups known to contain specialist predators were particularly intolerant to flooding. Hypoponera STD10 appeared to be well-adapted to highly flooded habitat. Although flooding did not appear to increase species richness or abundance at the habitat scale, low-flooding habitat contained a mixture of species found in the significantly distinct ant communities of terra firme and highly flooded habitat.
     

Impacts of Argentine ants on invertebrate communities with below-ground consequences

The Argentine ant, Linepithema humile (Mayr), is an invasive species that has been associated with various negative impacts in native communities around the world. These impacts, as for other invasive ants, are principally towards native ant species, and impacts on below-ground processes such as decomposition remain largely unexplored. We investigated the relationship between Argentine ants and invertebrate fauna, litter decomposition and soil microbial activity between paired invaded and uninvaded sites at two locations in Auckland, New Zealand, where there has been no research to date on their impacts. We examined the diversity and composition of invertebrate and microorganisms communities, and differences in soil and litter components. The composition of invertebrates (Order-level, ant and beetle species) was different between invaded and uninvaded sites, with fewer ants, isopods, amphipods, and fungus-feeding beetles at the invaded sites, whereas Collembola were more abundant at the invaded sites. There were significant differences in soil chemistry, including higher carbon and nitrogen microbial biomass at uninvaded sites. Several litter components were significantly different for Macropiper excelsum. The fibre content of litter was higher, and key nutrients (e.g. nitrogen) were lower, at invaded sites, indicating less breakdown of litter at invaded sites. A greater knowledge of the history of invasion at a site would clarify variation in the impacts of Argentine ants, but their persistence in the ground litter layer may have long-term implications for soil and plant health in native ecosystems.     

Spatial Variation in Army Ant Swarm Raiding and its Potential Effect on Biodiversity

Invertebrate communities of the tropical rain forest floor are highly diverse, characterized by patchy species distribution patterns and high variation in species density. Spatial variation in the foraging activity of swarm raiding army ants, prime invertebrate predators in tropical rain forests, is discussed as a mechanism contributing to these patterns, but highly resolved long‐term data on army ant raiding on the local and landscape scale are hitherto lacking. In this study, 196 positions in 11 study sites in a tropical rain forest in western Kenya were continuously monitored over ~4 mo for the occurrence of swarm raids of army ants. Using population simulation analyses, the consequences of army ant raiding for prey communities were assessed. We found an unexpectedly high variation in raid rates at the study site and landscape scale. The weekly chance of communities to become raided by army ants was on average 0.11, but ranged from 0 to 0.50 among the 196 positions. Simulating population developments of two Lotka–Volterra species—showing slight trade‐offs between competitive strength and resistance to army ant raids—in the real raiding landscapes showed that the observed spatial variation in raid rates may produce high prey diversity at larger spatial scales (due to high β‐diversity) and strong variation in species density. Our results indicate that high spatial variation in army ant swarm raiding is a mechanism capable of generating patchy species distribution patterns and maintaining the high biodiversity of invertebrate communities of the tropical rain forest floor.     

Ants on the Move: Resource Limitation of a Litter‐nesting Ant Community in Costa Rica1

The leaf litter of tropical wet forests is replete with itinerant ant nests. Nest movement may help ants evade the constraints of stress and disturbance and increase access to resources. I studied how nest relocation and environmental factors may explain the density, size, and growth of leaf litter ant nests. I decoupled the relationships among litter depth, food abundance, and nest availability in a 4‐mo manipulation of food and leaf litter in a community of litter‐nesting ants in a lowland wet forest in Costa Rica. Over 4 mo, 290 1 m² treatment and control plots were sampled without replacement. Nest densities doubled in response to food supplementation, but did not decrease in response to litter removal or stress (from litter trampling). The supplementation of food increased the utilization of less favored nesting materials. In response to food supplementation and litter trampling, arboreal ants established nests in the litter, and growth rates of the most common ants (Pheidole spp.) increased. Colony growth was independent of colony size and growth rates of the most abundant ants. In general, I conclude that litter‐nesting ant density is driven primarily by food limitation, that nest relocation behavior significantly affects access to resource and the demographic structure of this community, and that nest fission may be a method to break the growth–reproduction trade‐off.     

千岛湖陆桥岛屿地表蚂蚁群落物种多样性空间格局及其影响因素

为了探讨千岛湖岛屿景观参数对地表蚂蚁群落物种α和β多样性空间格局的影响, 作者分别于2017和2018年的5-8月, 采用陷阱法、凋落物分拣法和手捡法调查了千岛湖33个岛屿上的地表蚂蚁群落, 并依据食性将其划分为捕食性蚂蚁和杂食性蚂蚁。利用回归模型分析了全部蚂蚁、捕食性蚂蚁和杂食性蚂蚁群落α和β多样性与岛屿景观参数的关系。结果表明, 岛屿面积对全部蚂蚁、捕食性蚂蚁和杂食性蚂蚁的物种丰富度均有显著的正向影响, 而隔离度则无显著作用。蚂蚁群落的β多样性由空间周转组分主导。岛屿面积差对全部蚂蚁、捕食性蚂蚁和杂食性蚂蚁群落β多样性的嵌套组分有正向影响, 隔离度差只对杂食性蚂蚁的总体β多样性有正向影响。因此, 岛屿面积是影响千岛湖地表蚂蚁群落物种丰富度的主要因素, 并且岛屿面积通过嵌套组分来影响蚂蚁群落的β多样性, 表现出选择性灭绝过程。此外, 不同食性蚂蚁可能因为扩散能力的差异对岛屿景观参数产生不同的响应。     

Ant diversity as a direct and indirect driver of pselaphine rove beetle (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae) functional diversity in tropical rainforests,Sabah, Malaysian Borneo

Pselaphinae is a species‐rich beetle subfamily found globally, with many exhibiting myrmecophily—a symbiotic association with ants. Pselaphine–ant associations vary from facultative to obligate, but direct behavioral observations still remain scarce. Pselaphines are speciose and ecologically abundant within tropical leaf litter invertebrate communities where ants dominate, implying a potentially important ecological role that may be affected by habitat disturbances that impact ants. In this study, we measured and analyzed putative functional traits of leaf litter pselaphines associated with myrmecophily through morphometric analysis. We calculated “myrmecophile functional diversity” of pselaphines at different sites and examined this measure's relationship with ant abundance, in both old growth and logged rainforest sites in Sabah, Borneo. We show that myrmecophile functional diversity of pselaphine beetles increases as ant abundance increases. Old growth rainforest sites support a high abundance of ants, which is associated with a high abundance of probable myrmecophilous pselaphines. These results suggest a potential link between adult morphological characters and the functional role these beetles play in rainforest litter as ecological interaction partners with ants.     

Leaf traits and decomposition in tropical rainforests: revisiting some commonly held views and towards a new hypothesis

Proper estimates of decomposition are essential for tropical forests, given their key role in the global carbon (C) cycle. However, the current paradigm for litter decomposition is insufficient to account for recent observations and may limit model predictions for highly diverse tropical ecosystems. In light of recent findings from a nutrient-poor Amazonian rainforest, we revisit the commonly held views that: litter traits are a mere legacy of live leaf traits; nitrogen (N) and lignin are the key litter traits controlling decomposition; and favourable climatic conditions result in rapid decomposition in tropical forests. Substantial interspecific variation in litter phosphorus (P) was found to be unrelated to variation in green leaves. Litter nutrients explained no variation in decomposition, which instead was controlled primarily by non-lignin litter C compounds at low concentrations with important soil fauna effects. Despite near-optimal climatic conditions, tropical litter decomposition proceeded more slowly than in a climatically less favourable temperate forest. We suggest that slow decomposition in the studied rainforest results from a syndrome of poor litter C quality beyond a simple lignin control, enforcing energy starvation of decomposers.We hypothesize that the litter trait syndrome in nutrient-poor tropical rainforests may have evolved to increase plant access to limiting nutrients via mycorrhizal associations.     

蚂蚁筑巢对西双版纳热带森林土壤易氧化有机碳时空动态的影响

蚂蚁筑巢定居能够形成与巢穴周围显著不同的微生境和土壤养分环境,从而对土壤易氧化有机碳(EOC)产生重要影响.本研究以中国科学院西双版纳勐仑热带植物园白背桐群落为研究对象,比较蚂蚁巢地与非巢地土壤EOC时空分布特征,并分析蚂蚁筑巢引起土壤理化性质的改变对土壤EOC时空动态的影响.结果表明: 研究区蚁巢和非蚁巢地土壤EOC随月份均呈明显的单峰型变化规律,表现为6月>9月>3月>12月;土壤EOC沿土层呈逐渐降低的变化趋势,在0～5 cm土层,蚁巢土壤EOC显著大于非巢地,在5～10和10～15 cm土层的差异不显著.蚂蚁筑巢显著提高了土壤温度、土壤有机碳、土壤易氧化有机碳、土壤微生物生物量碳、全氮、硝态氮和水解氮含量,显著降低了土壤含水率和容重,但对铵态氮、pH值的影响不显著.土壤有机碳、土壤微生物生物量碳是调控蚁巢和非巢地土壤EOC时空变化的主要因子,土壤温度、含水率、全氮和硝态氮等土壤指标对土壤EOC的影响次之.蚂蚁筑巢主要通过改变微生境(土壤温度和水分)及土壤养分(主要是土壤有机碳和微生物生物量碳)的状况,进而调控热带森林土壤易氧化有机碳的时空动态.     

Stoichiometric homeostasis in response to variable water and nutrient supply in a Robinia pseudoacacia plant–soil system

刺槐植物-土壤系统生态化学计量内稳性对水分和养分变异的响应特征 所有生物体都需要一定比例的元素来维持正常的生理代谢过程,它们的可塑性取决于它们利用外部资源的效率。阐明不同资源供应水平下植物、土壤和土壤微生物生物量生态化学计量特征之间的相互作用非常重要。本研究以一年生刺槐(Robinia pseudoacacia)幼苗为研究对象,测定不同水平水分、氮素和磷素处理下刺槐叶片、细根、土壤和微生物生物量C、N、P含量及其化学计量学指标。结果表明,刺槐叶片、细根、土壤和微生物生物量C、N、P含量及其化学计量特征会对其生存环境水分和养分条件的变化表现出一定程度的可塑性;方差分解分析结果表明,细根计量比解释了微生物生物量计量比方差的很大一部分;结构方程模型进一步揭示了细根计量比和叶片计量比是影响土壤微生物生物量C:N和C:P 的两个直接因素,而细根计量比具有较大的直接作用。此外,内稳性特征分析表明土壤微生物生物量C 和C:P对土壤养分变化较为敏感,其他指标均具有内稳性。这些结果明确了土壤微生物生物量化学计量的重要性,提高我们对不同生境水分和养分供应水平下植物-土壤系统养分循环机理的认识。     

喀斯特区不同退化程度植被群落植物-凋落物-土壤-微生物生态化学计量特征

为摸清喀斯特植被退化对群落各组分C、N、P生态化学计量特征及内稳态特征的影响，为喀斯特退化生态系统植被恢复与重建提供科学依据，以桂西北喀斯特地区5种退化程度植被群落为研究对象，测定了不同退化程度植被群落植物叶片、凋落物、土壤和微生物生物量的C、N、P含量，分析其化学计量比特征、相互关系及植物内稳性特征。结果表明：(1)随着退化程度加剧，叶片C、N、P含量、N∶P和凋落物N∶P、微生物量C显著下降，而叶片C∶N、C∶P则显著增加，且植物叶片N∶P<14;随退化程度加剧，凋落物N、P含量、土壤C、N、P含量、微生物量N、P呈先略有增后显著降低的趋势，且不同退化程度群落土壤N∶P和微生物量C∶N无显著差异。(2)叶片N、P含量与土壤N、P含量，叶片C∶P与土壤C∶N、C∶P、N∶P,叶片N∶P与凋落物N、N∶P,叶片C、N、P含量与微生物量C呈显著或极显著正相关关系；叶片C∶N与土壤C、N,叶片C∶P与土壤N、P,叶片N∶P与土壤P呈显著或极显著负相关关系。(3)喀斯特地区植物叶片N、P元素的内稳性指数(H)平均值分别为2.74和2.31,属于弱稳态型，叶片N∶P的H值为5.14,为稳...     

A test of species–energy theory: patch occupancy and colony size in tropical rainforest litter‐nesting ants

Species–energy theory can account for spatial variation in the abundance and community composition of animals, though the mechanisms of species–energy theory are under contention. We evaluated three competing mechanisms at the local spatial scale by conducting an in vivo light manipulation over supplemental ant nests placed in the leaf litter of a Costa Rican tropical rainforest. We found that the light environment did not alter the 10% rate of occupation of the supplemental nests, but light did alter the size of colonies and the genus‐level composition of the community. Light levels in the foraging range were positively associated with colony sizes of all ants, whereas light levels directly on the nest site were predictive of the occurrence of ant genera. Colonies of specialized predators, dacetine ants, were larger in more shaded foraging environments, and the functional group of generalized myrmicines exhibited an opposite pattern, with smaller‐sized colonies in response to shading. Responses of twig‐dwelling ants to the light environment were most consistent with the metabolic cost hypothesis as a mechanism of species–energy theory. We found mixed support for the thermal energy availability hypothesis, and scant support for the chemical energy hypothesis, as the litter depth, a measure of prey density, was not predictive of ant responses. In summary, at the local scale, we found patterns in colony size and life history are governed by light‐dependent mechanisms.     

Litter elemental stoichiometry and biomass densities of forest soil invertebrates

To maintain constant chemical composition, i.e. elemental homeostasis, organisms have to consume resources of sufficient quality to meet their own specific stoichiometric demand. Therefore, concentrations of elements indicate resource quality, and rare elements in the environment may act as limiting factors for individual organisms scaling up to constrain population densities. We investigated how the biomass densities of invertebrate populations of temperate forest soil communities depend on 1) the stoichiometry of the basal litter according to ecological stoichiometry concepts and 2) the population average body mass as predicted by metabolic theory. We used a large data set on biomass densities of 4959 populations across 48 forests in three regions of Germany. Following various ecological stoichiometry hypotheses, we tested for effects of the carbon‐to‐element ratios of 10 elements. Additionally, we included the abiotic litter characteristics habitat size (represented by litter depth), litter diversity and pH, as well as forest type as an indicator for human management. Across 12 species groups, we found that the biomass densities scaled significantly with population‐averaged body masses thus supporting metabolic theory. Additionally, 10 of these allometric scaling relationships exhibited interactions with stoichiometric and abiotic co‐variables. The four most frequent co‐variables were 1) forest type, 2) the carbon‐to‐phosphorus ratio (C:P), 3) the carbon‐to‐sodium ratio (C:Na), and the carbon‐to‐nitrogen ratio (C:N). Hence, our analyses support the sodium shortage hypothesis for microbi‐detritivores, the structural elements hypothesis for some predator groups (concerning N), and the secondary productivity hypothesis (concerning P) across all trophic groups in our data. In contrast, the ecosystem size hypothesis was only supported for some meso‐ and macrofauna detritivores. Our study is thus providing a comprehensive analysis how the elemental stoichiometry of the litter as the basal resource constrain population densities across multiple trophic levels of soil communities.     

Organic matter inputs shift soil enzyme activity and allocation patterns in a wet tropical forest

Soil extracellular enzymes mediate organic matter turnover and nutrient cycling yet remain little studied in one of Earth’s most rapidly changing, productive biomes: tropical forests. Using a long-term leaf litter and throughfall manipulation, we explored relationships between organic matter (OM) inputs, soil chemical properties and enzyme activities in a lowland tropical forest. We assayed six hydrolytic soil enzymes responsible for liberating carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P), calculated enzyme activities and ratios in control plots versus treatments, and related these to soil biogeochemical variables. While leaf litter addition and removal tended to increase and decrease enzyme activities per gram soil, respectively, shifts in enzyme allocation patterns implied changes in relative nutrient constraints with altered OM inputs. Enzyme activity ratios in control plots suggested strong belowground P constraints; this was exacerbated when litter inputs were curtailed. Conversely, with double litter inputs, increased enzymatic investment in N acquisition indicated elevated N demand. Across all treatments, total soil C correlated more strongly with enzyme activities than soluble C fluxes, and enzyme ratios were sensitive to resource stoichiometry (soil C:N) and N availability (net N mineralization). Despite high annual precipitation in this site (MAP ~5 m), soil moisture positively correlated with five of six enzymes. Our results suggest resource availability regulates tropical soil enzyme activities, soil moisture plays an additional role even in very wet forests, and relative investment in C, N and P degrading enzymes in tropical soils will often be distinct from higher latitude ecosystems yet is sensitive to OM inputs.     

沙化程度和林龄对湿地松叶片及林下土壤C、N、P化学计量特征影响

为阐明沙化程度和林龄对湿地松(Pinus elliottii)叶片及林下土壤碳(C)、氮(N)、磷(P)化学计量特征影响,探讨C、N、P化学计量比对沙山植被恢复的指示意义,在鄱阳湖多宝沙山沿沙化梯度测定了不同林龄湿地松叶片及林下土壤C、N、P含量。结果表明:1)在叶片C、N、P及其化学计量比中叶N与C∶N对沙化程度和林龄变化反应最为敏感。对于轻度与中度沙化区的5年生与10年生湿地松林,林龄、林龄与沙化程度的交互作用均对叶N及C∶N产生显著影响;对于中度与重度沙化区的2年生和10年生湿地松林,林龄和沙化程度均显著影响叶N与C∶N。2)叶片与土壤二者C、N、P及化学计量比对沙化程度与林龄变化的响应不完全一致。林龄、林龄与沙化程度的交互作用对轻度与中度沙化区5年生和10年生湿地松林土壤全N有显著影响;对于中度与重度沙化区2年生和10年生湿地松林,仅沙化程度对土壤全磷以及林龄对土壤有机碳影响显著。3)10年生湿地松叶片N∶P平均值为20.63,10年生以下湿地松叶片N∶P平均值为15.61,随着林龄的增加,湿地松生长由N、P共同限制逐渐转向更受P的限制。     

Fungal community composition in neotropical rain forests: the influence of tree diversity and precipitation

Plant diversity is considered one factor structuring soil fungal communities because the diversity of compounds in leaf litter might determine the extent of resource heterogeneity for decomposer communities. Lowland tropical rain forests have the highest plant diversity per area of any biome. Since fungi are responsible for much of the decomposition occurring in forest soils, understanding the factors that structure fungi in tropical forests may provide valuable insight for predicting changes in global carbon and nitrogen fluxes. To test the role of plant diversity in shaping fungal community structure and function, soil (0-20?cm) and leaf litter (O horizons) were collected from six established 1-ha forest census plots across a natural plant diversity gradient on the Isthmus of Panama. We used 454 pyrosequencing and phospholipid fatty acid analysis to evaluate correlations between microbial community composition, precipitation, soil nutrients, and plant richness. In soil, the number of fungal taxa increased significantly with increasing mean annual precipitation, but not with plant richness. There were no correlations between fungal communities in leaf litter and plant diversity or precipitation, and fungal communities were found to be compositionally distinct between soil and leaf litter. To directly test for effects of plant species richness on fungal diversity and function, we experimentally re-created litter diversity gradients in litter bags with 1, 25, and 50 species of litter. After 6?months, we found a significant effect of litter diversity on decomposition rate between one and 25 species of leaf litter. However, fungal richness did not track plant species richness. Although studies in a broader range of sites is required, these results suggest that precipitation may be a more important factor than plant diversity or soil nutrient status in structuring tropical forest soil fungal communities.     

The response of microbial biomass and hydrolytic enzymes to a decade of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium addition in a lowland tropical rain forest

Nutrient availability is widely considered to constrain primary productivity in lowland tropical forests, yet there is little comparable information for the soil microbial biomass. We assessed microbial nutrient limitation by quantifying soil microbial biomass and hydrolytic enzyme activities in a long-term nutrient addition experiment in lowland tropical rain forest in central Panama. Multiple measurements were made over an annual cycle in plots that had received a decade of nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and micronutrient addition. Phosphorus addition increased soil microbial carbon (13 %), nitrogen (21 %), and phosphorus (49 %), decreased phosphatase activity by ~65 % and N-acetyl β-glucosaminidase activity by 24 %, but did not affect β-glucosidase activity. In contrast, addition of nitrogen, potassium, or micronutrients did not significantly affect microbial biomass or the activity of any enzyme. Microbial nutrients and hydrolytic enzyme activities all declined markedly in the dry season, with the change in microbial biomass equivalent to or greater than the annual nutrient flux in fine litter fall. Although multiple nutrients limit tree productivity at this site, we conclude that phosphorus limits microbial biomass in this strongly-weathered lowland tropical forest soil. This finding indicates that efforts to include enzymes in biogeochemical models must account for the disproportionate microbial investment in phosphorus acquisition in strongly-weathered soils.     

Asynchronous fluctuation of soil microbial biomass and plant litterfall in a tropical wet forest

Carbon availability often controls soil microbial growth and there is evidence that at regional scales soil microbial biomass is positively correlated with aboveground forest litter input. We examined the influence of plant litterfall on annual variation of soil microbial biomass in control and litter-excluded plots in a tropical wet forest of Puerto Rico. We also measured soil moisture, soil temperature, and plant litterfall in these treatment plots. Aboveground plant litter input had no effect on soil microbial biomass or on its pattern of fluctuation. Monthly changes in soil microbial biomass were not synchronized with aboveground litter inputs, but rather preceeded litterfall by one month. Soil microbial biomass did not correlate with soil temperature, moisture, or rainfall. Our results suggest that changes in soil microbial biomass are not directly regulated by soil temperature, moisture, or aboveground litter input at local scales within a tropical wet forest, and there were asynchronous fluctuation between soil microbial biomass and plant litterfall. Potential mechanisms for this asynchronous fluctuation include soil microbial biomass regulation by competition for soil nutrients between microorganisms and plants, and regulation by below-ground carbon inputs associated with the annual solar and drying-rewetting cycles in tropical wet forests.     

The influence of nest availability on the abundance and diversity of twig-dwelling ants in a Papua New Guinea forest

Tropical ant communities are frequently diverse, but highly patchy in nature. The availability of suitable nest sites may be a regulating force in structuring litter ant communities. Our aim was to examine ant resource utilization in naturally occurring twigs, and to modify the availability of these resources in order to quantify the influence of nest availability on ant communities in a Papua New Guinean forest. First, we compared ant communities that assemble in artificial twigs (drilled, wooden dowels), naturally occurring twigs, and the leaf litter. A total of 55 ant species were captured: 33 from the leaf litter, 29 from naturally occurring twigs, and only 12 from artificial nests. Significantly different communities formed in each of the three nest types. Second, we examined how the density of natural or artificial nest material influenced the ant abundance and species richness. Plots had between 5 and 96 potential nest sites. An average of only 11.2% of these twigs was colonized. Both species richness and the total abundance of adult ants were significantly positively correlated with increasing naturally occurring twig density. Conversely, increasing the availability of artificial nests from 5 to 20 per plot had no significant effect on the proportion of artificial nests colonized, species richness, or the colony size. We observed that ant species richness and abundance increased with natural twig density, at least for naturally occurring communities. But why so many twigs remain vacant and available for ant colonization remains unknown. Other biotic and abiotic factors likely influence the use of nesting habitat in these ant communities.     

How Ants Drop Out: Ant Abundance on Tropical Mountains

In tropical wet forests, ants are a large proportion of the animal biomass, but the factors determining abundance are not well understood. We characterized ant abundance in the litter layer of 41 mature wet forest sites spread throughout Central America (Chiapas, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica) and examined the impact of elevation (as a proxy for temperature) and community species richness. Sites were intentionally chosen to minimize variation in precipitation and seasonality. From sea level to 1500 m ant abundance very gradually declined, community richness declined more rapidly than abundance, and the local frequency of the locally most common species increased. These results suggest that within this elevational zone, density compensation is acting, maintaining high ant abundance as richness declines. In contrast, in sites above 1500 m, ant abundance dropped abruptly to much lower levels. Among these high montane sites, community richness explained much more of the variation in abundance than elevation, and there was no evidence of density compensation. The relative stability of abundance below 1500 m may be caused by opposing effects of temperature on productivity and metabolism. Lower temperatures may decrease productivity and thus the amount of food available for consumers, but slower metabolisms of consumers may allow maintenance of higher biomass at lower resource supply rates. Ant communities at these lower elevations may be highly interactive, the result of continuous habitat presence over geological time. High montane sites may be ephemeral in geological time, resulting in non-interactive communities dominated by historical and stochastic processes. Abundance in these sites may be determined by the number of species that manage to colonize and/or avoid extinction on mountaintops.