Invasive ants disperse seeds farther than native ants, affecting the spatial pattern of seedling recruitment and survival

Meadley‐Dunphy, Shannon A.; Prior, Kirsten M.; Frederickson, Megan E.

doi:10.1007/s00442-019-04553-3

Cited by 15 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 55 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Our previous work shows that the identity of ant species in the same functional guild directly affects communities of partner plants (Meadley‐Dunphy et al., 2020; Prior et al., 2015). Here we show that indirect effects mediated by interactions between ant species in the same functional guild also affect plant communities.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Here we show that indirect effects mediated by interactions between ant species in the same functional guild also affect plant communities. Differences in traits and behaviours of seed‐dispersing ant species directly result in differences in seed removal rates, seed deposition location and seedling recruitment (Meadley‐Dunphy et al., 2020; Prior et al., 2015). In addition, interspecific interactions between ant species affect foraging and dispersal behaviours with cascading effects on seed dispersal and seedling recruitment patterns.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In particular, in previous work, we found that ant species vary in how quickly they recruit to, remove, process and re-disperse seeds outside of nests (Prior et al, 2015;Prior, Saxena, & Frederickson, 2014), along with where they deposit seeds in relation to their nests and adult and dispersed plants (Meadley-Dunphy, . Myrmica rubra is better at discovering seeds than Aphaenogaster sp., finding and moving seeds more quickly (Meadley-Dunphy, Prior, & Frederickson, 2016;Prior et al, 2014Prior et al, , 2015, and to more distant locations (Meadley-Dunphy et al, 2020). This previous work shows that the two seed-dispersing ants directly impact and cause divergence of myrmecochore communities (Meadley-Dunphy et al, 2020;Prior et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…Myrmica rubra is better at discovering seeds than Aphaenogaster sp., finding and moving seeds more quickly (Meadley‐Dunphy, Prior, & Frederickson, 2016; Prior et al., 2014, 2015), and to more distant locations (Meadley‐Dunphy et al., 2020). This previous work shows that the two seed‐dispersing ants directly impact and cause divergence of myrmecochore communities (Meadley‐Dunphy et al., 2020; Prior et al., 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…If interactions are not antagonistic, we predict no effect, or even an additive or synergistic effect, if different ant species interact with seeds of different plant species in complementary ways. Since the quality of dispersal depends not only on the number of seeds dispersed, but on how ‘well’ seeds are dispersed and how different plant species respond to deposition location (Meadley‐Dunphy et al., 2020), the effect of interspecific interactions on dispersal may or may not translate into effects on seedling recruitment and community composition.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Interactions between seed‐dispersing ant species affect plant community composition in field mesocosms

Prior

Meadley‐Dunphy

Frederickson

2020

Journal of Animal Ecology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

1. In generalized mutualisms, species vary in the quality of services they provide to their partners directly via traits that affect partner fitness and indirectly via traits that influence interactions among mutualist species that play similar functional roles. Myrmecochory, or seed dispersal by ants, is a generalized mutualism with ant species varying in the quality of dispersal services they provide to their plant partners. Variation in ant species identity can directly impact seed dispersal patterns and plant community composition; however, we know less about how interactions among seed-dispersing ant species indirectly influence plant partners. 2. The invasive ant Myrmica rubra, is a high-quality seed-disperser in its native range that interacts with myrmecochores (ant-dispersed plants) and the high-quality seed disperser Aphaenogaster sp. in its invaded range. We use this system to examine how interactions between two functionally similar mutualist ant species influence the recruitment and community composition of ant-dispersed plants. 3. We performed a field mesocosm experiment and a laboratory behavioural experiment to compare discovery and dominance behaviours between ant species, and seed dispersal and seedling recruitment of four myrmecochore species among intraspecific interaction treatments of each ant species and an interspecific interaction treatment. 4. We found that M. rubra was better at discovering and dispersing seeds, but Aphaenogaster sp. was dominantly aggressive over M. rubra. Interspecific interactions dampened seed dispersal relative to dispersal by the better disperser. Despite this dampening, we found no effect of interspecific interactions on seedling recruitment. However, community composition of seedlings in the interspecific interaction treatment was more similar to composition in the aggressively dominant ant (Aphaenogaster sp.) treatment than in the better discoverer ant M. rubra treatment. 5. We show that interspecific interactions between mutualist species in the same functional guild affect the outcome of mutualistic interactions with partner species. Despite the native ant dispersing fewer seeds, its dominance over the subordinate (invasive) ant has the potential to allow for some level of biotic resistance against the effects of M. rubra on plant communities when these species coexist.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Interactions between seed‐dispersing ant species affect plant community composition in field mesocosms

Prior

Meadley‐Dunphy

Frederickson

2020

Journal of Animal Ecology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Antagonistic and mutualistic interactions alter seed dispersal of understory plants at forest edges

2021

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Seed dispersal by ants is an important interaction in North American eastern deciduous forests, where 30-40% of understory plants are myrmecochores, with seeds that possess lipid-rich appendages (elaiosomes) that attract seed-dispersing ants. Contemporary forests are fragmented and have regenerated from being previously cleared (secondary forests). In secondary forests, and especially along edges, myrmecochores are a depauperate component of forests. Here, we assess if seed dispersal of myrmecochores by ants, particularly the keystone disperser, Aphaenogaster sp., is intact in forest interiors compared to edges. In three North American northeastern deciduous forests, we compared myrmecochore cover and richness, seed dispersal by ants, and the abundance and richness of ants and other forest floor invertebrates between interiors and edges. We also conducted a seed removal experiment, excluding either ants, rodents (seed predators), or ants and rodents, to test their effects on seed dispersal between interiors and edges. We found differences in the composition of understory plants between interiors and edges, with edges lacking myrmecochores. We also found that seed dispersal by ants was lower in two of the three edges and corresponded to Aphaenogaster sp. abundance. Antagonistic interactions with an invasive slug that is an elaiosome robber, Arion subfuscus, was more apparent than damage by rodents in the experiment, negatively affected dispersal by ants more at edges than in interiors. Here we show that changes in mutualistic and antagonistic interactions affect seed dispersal at forest edges and that not all forest edges are the same, with some more intact than others. Understanding how seed dispersal is impacted in contemporary forests is important towards the goal of conserving and restoring depauperate forest understory communities.

show abstract

Historical forest disturbance results in variation in functional resilience of seed dispersal mutualisms

Buono

Lofaso

Smisko

et al. 2023

Ecology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Mutualistic interactions provide essential ecosystem functions that contribute to promoting and maintaining diversity in ecosystems. Understanding if functionally important mutualisms are "resilient" (i.e., able to resist or recover) to anthropogenic disturbance is essential for revealing the capacity for diversity to recover. Animal-mediated seed dispersal supports plant population growth and influences community structure, and disturbance affecting seed dispersal can contribute to low resiliency of plant diversity. Ant-seed dispersal mutualisms are sensitive to anthropogenic disturbance, as they rely on one to a few high-quality dispersal partners. In North American eastern deciduous forests, ants in the genus Aphaenogaster are "keystone dispersers" of understory forbs adapted to dispersal by ants (myrmecochores), which make up more than one-third of the understory herbaceous community. The majority of forests within this region have regenerated from previous disturbance in the form of clearing for agriculture. Previous studies have revealed that myrmecochore diversity is not resilient to previous clearing. Here, we ask if seed dispersal mutualisms are resilient to historical forest disturbance and if decreases in mutualistic interactions with partners, Aphaenogaster sp., or increases in antagonistic interactions cause degradation of function. In a large-scale natural experiment (20 sites), we measured seed removal, the abundance of mutualis-

show abstract

Invasive ants disperse seeds farther than native ants, affecting the spatial pattern of seedling recruitment and survival

Cited by 15 publications

References 55 publications

Interactions between seed‐dispersing ant species affect plant community composition in field mesocosms

Interactions between seed‐dispersing ant species affect plant community composition in field mesocosms

Antagonistic and mutualistic interactions alter seed dispersal of understory plants at forest edges

Historical forest disturbance results in variation in functional resilience of seed dispersal mutualisms

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About