Impact of the Invasive Argentine Ant in Citrus Agroecosystems: Effects on the Diversity and Frequency of Native Ant Species Foraging on Tree Canopy
| Autor: | Vera Zina, Manuela Branco, José Carlos Franco |
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| Rok vydání: | 2020 |
| Předmět: |
Linepithema humile
0106 biological sciences principal response curve Foraging Biodiversity ants 010603 evolutionary biology 01 natural sciences Article Invasive species invasive species Tapinoma nigerrimum Argentine ant lcsh:Science Formicidae biology Ecology Plagiolepis pygmaea biology.organism_classification 010602 entomology Insect Science Lasius grandis seasonal changes lcsh:Q Linepithema Orchard |
| Zdroj: | Insects, Vol 11, Iss 785, p 785 (2020) Insects Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (RCAAP) instacron:RCAAP Volume 11 Issue 11 |
| ISSN: | 2075-4450 |
| DOI: | 10.3390/insects11110785 |
| Popis: | Simple Summary We aimed at assessing the impact of the Argentine ant invasion on the native ant community in citrus ecosystems. We compared the Argentine ant’s invaded and uninvaded citrus orchards in the south of Portugal, estimating species richness and the frequency of ant assemblages foraging on the tree canopy. The results suggest that the Argentine ant has a negative impact on the native ant community structure, markedly reducing the diversity and frequency of native species. This impact was more or less pronounced depending on the season. Possible implications for citrus pest management are discussed. Abstract The invasion of the Argentine ant, Linepithema humile (Mayr) (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) can alter the entire ecosystem with serious impacts on the native community structure (e.g., ant diversity) and processes (e.g., trophic interactions) leading to biodiversity loss and pest outbreaks. Most studies addressing these impacts have been conducted in natural or semi-natural areas, few are those conducted in agricultural ecosystems, such as citrus orchards. These are dominant agricultural ecosystems in Mediterranean landscapes. Furthermore, most studies have been conducted in a short span, not evidencing seasonal fluctuations. In this work, we assessed the ecological impact of the Argentine ant on the native ant communities in citrus orchards, in the region of Algarve, southern Portugal. By using principal response curve, we compared seasonal variation on ant assemblages in invaded and uninvaded citrus orchards foraging on tree canopy from a two-year sampling. The Argentine ant had a marked negative impact on the native ant community foraging on citrus canopy. In the uninvaded orchards, the native ant community had a rich assemblage composed of 16 ant species, in its majority (72%) controlled by the dominant species Lasius grandis Forel, Tapinoma nigerrimum (Nylander) and/or Pheidole pallidula (Nylander). In the invaded orchards, the native ant community was poorer and highly modified, mostly dominated by the Argentine ant (80%). Apparently, the only native ant species not affected by the presence of the Argentine ant was Plagiolepis pygmaea (Latreille). A significant negative effect was found between the proportion of infested trees by L. humile and the number of native ant species per orchard. Differences in the native ant community in the invaded and uninvaded orchards persisted over seasons and years. However, negative impacts were higher in the spring and summer, and less pronounced in the autumn. We discuss implications for citrus pest management. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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