How Ant Nests Increase Soil Biota Richness and Abundance: A Field Experiment

Boulton, April M.; Amberman, Keith D.

doi:10.1007/s10531-004-2177-7

Cited by 34 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…Main decomposers, herbivores, generalist predators and parasitoids responded with an increase in density to ant colony presence. Such positive effects of ants have so far only been found for soil biota, such as bacteria, nematodes, mites and collembolans which reach higher densities in harvester ant nests (Boulton & Amberman 2006). Our results demonstrate that these kinds of effects can extend to the wider above-ground food web.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 50%

“…However, it is possible that repeated additions of fresh soil from ant nests to the plots might have resulted in a stronger effect, comparable to that of a living ant colony. Ant nest soil is nutrient rich, sustaining the respiration of soil organisms, and Boulton & Amberman (2006) found that the addition of food (seeds and insect carcasses) to the soil best mimicked the effects of harvester ant nests (Messor andrei) on soil conditions. The positive effect of ants on herbivores, which had no mutualistic interactions with ants in our study system, may be explained by indirect effects mediated by other components of the food web.…”

Section: Preda Onmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These changes in structural and chemical soil properties can lead to higher decomposition rates and productivity and to positive indirect effects, for which we use the term 'facilitation', of ants on plants, decomposers, herbivores and higher trophic levels. Although some studies have shown that ant nests tend to increase soil nutrient concentrations, only a few have examined ant impact on soil animals inside ant nests (Boulton & Amberman 2006), and no study has looked at the potential impact of ants on different trophic levels of the above-ground macro-arthropod community.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ecosystem engineering and predation: the multi-trophic impact of two ant species

Sanders

Veen

2011

Journal of Animal Ecology

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1. Ants are ubiquitous ecosystem engineers and generalist predators and are able to affect ecological communities via both pathways. They are likely to influence any other terrestrial arthropod group either directly or indirectly caused by their high abundance and territoriality. 2. We studied the impact of two ant species common in Central Europe, Myrmica rubra and Lasius niger, on an arthropod community. Colony presence and density of these two ant species were manipulated in a field experiment from the start of ant activity in spring to late summer. 3. The experiment revealed a positive influence of the presence of one ant colony on densities of decomposers, herbivores and parasitoids. However, in the case of herbivores and parasitoids, this effect was reversed in the presence of two colonies. 4. Generally, effects of the two ant species were similar with the exception of their effect on Braconidae parasitoid densities that responded positively to one colony of M. rubra but not of L. niger. 5. Spider density was not affected by ant colony manipulation, but species richness of spiders responded positively to ant presence. This effect was independent of ant colony density, but where two colonies were present, spider richness was significantly greater in plots with two M. rubra colonies than in plots with one colony of each ant species. 6. To test whether the positive ecosystem engineering effects were purely caused by modified properties of the soil, we added in an additional experiment (i) the soil from ant nests (without ants) or (ii) unmodified soil or (iii) ant nests (including ants) to experimental plots. Ant nest soil on its own did not have a significant impact on densities of decomposers, herbivores or predators, which were significantly, and positively, affected by the addition of an intact nest. 7. The results suggest an important role of both ant species in the grassland food web, strongly affecting the densities of decomposers, herbivores and higher trophic levels. We discuss how the relative impact via bottom-up and top-down effects of ants depends on nest density, with a relatively greater top-down predatory impact at higher densities.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 50%

Section: Preda Onmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ecosystem engineering and predation: the multi-trophic impact of two ant species

Sanders

Veen

2011

Journal of Animal Ecology

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“…These results are interpreted as a consequence of higher availability of the trophic resource (organic matter concentration and availability in casts) and microhabitats (surface roughness and burrows) for soil biota due to earthworm casting and burrowing activities. Boulton & Amberman (2006) also documented that bacterial diversity (phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) profiles) is enhanced in soil experimentally processed by ant activities (Fig. 13c).…”

Section: T Decaënsmentioning

confidence: 72%

“…Diversity of different groups of soil organisms in situations with (+) or without (-) earthworm (W) or ant (A) activity: (a) fungi inside earthworm casts and in bulk soil in India (afterTiwari & Mishra, 1993), (b) macroinvertebrates below earthworm casts and in bulk soil in Colombia (afterDecaëns et al, 1999), (c) microbial diversity (PLFA, Phospholipid Fatty Acid activity) in soil with or without ant activity (afterBoulton & Amberman, 2006) (* indicates significant earthworm or ant effects at P < 0.05).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Macroecological patterns in soil communities

Decaëns

2010

Global Ecology and Biogeography

392

294

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Aim To review published evidence regarding the factors that influence the geographic variation in diversity of soil organisms at different spatial scales. Location Global.Methods A search of the relevant literature was conducted using the Web of Science and the author's personal scientific database as the major sources. Special attention was paid to include seminal studies, highly cited papers and/or studies highlighting novel results.Results Despite their significant contribution to global biodiversity, our taxonomic knowledge of soil biota is still poor compared with that of most aboveground organisms. This is particularly evident for small-bodied taxa. Global patterns of soil biodiversity distribution have been poorly documented and are thought to differ significantly from what is reported above-ground. Based on existing data, it appears that microorganisms do not respond to large-scale environmental gradients in the same way as metazoans. Whereas soil microflora seem to be mainly represented by cosmopolitan species, soil animals respond to altitudinal, latitudinal or area gradients in the same way as described for above-ground organisms. At local scales, there is less evidence that local factors regulate above-and below-ground communities in the same way. Except for a few taxa, the humpbacked response to stress and disturbance gradients doesn't seem to apply underground. Soil communities thus appear weakly structured by competition, although competitive constraints may account for assembly rules within specific taxa. The main factor constraining local soil biodiversity is the compact and heterogeneous nature of soils, which provides unrivalled potential for niche partitioning, thus allowing high levels of local biodiversity. This heterogeneity is increased by the impact of ecosystem engineers that generate resource patchiness at a range of spatio-temporal scales.

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Fungal communities in the garden chamber soils of leaf‐cutting ants

Rodrigues

Passarini²,

Ferro

et al. 2013

J. Basic Microbiol.

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Leaf-cutting ants modify the properties of the soil adjacent to their nests. Here, we examined whether such an ant-altered environment impacts the belowground fungal communities. Fungal diversity and community structure of soil from the fungus garden chambers of Atta sexdens rubropilosa and Atta bisphaerica, two widespread leaf-cutting ants in Brazil, were determined and compared with non-nest soils. Culture-dependent methods revealed similar species richness but different community compositions between both types of soils. Penicillium janthinellum and Trichoderma spirale were the prevalent isolates in fungus chamber soils and non-nest soils, respectively. In contrast to cultivation methods, analyses of clone libraries based on the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region indicated that richness of operational taxonomic units significantly differed between soils of the fungus chamber and non-nest soils. FastUnifrac analyses based on ITS sequences further revealed a clear distinction in the community structure between both types of soils. Plectania milleri and an uncultured Clavariaceae fungus were prevalent in fungus chamber soils and non-nest soils, respectively. FastUnifrac analyses also revealed that fungal community structures of soil from the garden chambers markedly differed among ant species. Our findings suggest that leaf-cutting ants affect fungal communities in the soil from the fungus chamber in comparison to non-nest soils.

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How Ant Nests Increase Soil Biota Richness and Abundance: A Field Experiment

Cited by 34 publications

References 28 publications

Ecosystem engineering and predation: the multi-trophic impact of two ant species

Ecosystem engineering and predation: the multi-trophic impact of two ant species

Macroecological patterns in soil communities

Fungal communities in the garden chamber soils of leaf‐cutting ants

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