An Ornamental Heliconias Crop as a Reservoir of the Native Myrmecofauna: A case of Tropical Horticulture in Central Veracruz, Mexico

Autor: Otto Raúl Leiva-Ovalle, Jaime Negrín-Ruiz, H. E. Lee-Espinosa, Miguel Á. García-Martínez, Ivonne Landero-Torres, Joaquín Murguía-González, María Elena Galindo-Tovar
Rok vydání: 2014
Předmět:
Zdroj: Southwestern Entomologist. 39:135-146
ISSN: 2162-2647
0147-1724
Popis: Currently there is an increase in tropical crops dedicated to ornamental horticulture. This study is the first assessment of the role of a Heliconia spp. ornamental plant cultivation in Mexico as habitat for insect biodiversity conservation, using ant assemblages as bioindicators. A total of 9,022 ant workers belonging to seven subfamilies, 14 tribes, 27 genera, and 55 species was captured. Conversion of native vegetation to tropical ornamental agriculture affects the richness, diversity and dominance of ants, but not assemblages’ composition. The importance of species composition as a predictor parameter of functional changes in the landscape is highlighted.
Databáze: OpenAIRE