Platte Prairies Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in Restored and Remnant Prairie Tracts in Central Nebraska

Trager, James C.; Winkler, Laura B.; Helzer, Chris

doi:10.3157/061.143.0106

Cited by 2 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…2B) where control sites had on average 11.04 ant species per site compared to 7.06 species per site in the harvest sites. These values are comparable to previous studies in temperate grasslands where ant species richness is limited to <5-20 species per field (Menke et al 2015, Trager et al 2017 with rarely more than 40 species common to grasslands within a given region (Wheeler et al 1994, Trager et al 2017. None of the measured covariates (proportion of sand, patch size, and landscape diversity) affected a diversity.…”

Section: Harvest Effects On a Diversitysupporting

confidence: 85%

“…Harvesting can have similar effects on biodiversity as other disturbances such as fire and grazing and can be used to manage biodiversity at both local and regional scales. While many studies have focused on a diversity in restoration (Arnan et al 2015, Trager et al 2017, ignoring other components of diversity (e.g., b diversity) and can lead to conflicting management advice (Concepci on et al 2012). In our study, annual harvest decreased a diversity by lowering the occurrence of intermediately dominant ant species and increasing the number of individuals of the two dominant ant species.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 61%

“…While many studies have focused on a diversity in restoration (Arnan et al 2015, Trager et al 2017, ignoring other components of diversity (e.g., b diversity) and can lead to conflicting management advice (Concepci on et al 2012). Harvesting can have similar effects on biodiversity as other disturbances such as fire and grazing and can be used to manage biodiversity at both local and regional scales.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Disturbance differentially affects alpha and beta diversity of ants in tallgrass prairies

et al. 2018

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Biodiversity conservation requires understanding how disturbance influences biodiversity patterns at multiple spatial scales. Because the total diversity of species within a given region (c diversity) is influenced by both local diversity (a diversity) and dissimilarity in community composition (b diversity), understanding disturbance effects on both components of diversity is essential, especially if disturbance impacts a and b diversities differently. In this three-year study, we examined how a disturbance (annual harvesting of grasslands) and environmental gradients in the proportion of sand locally, habitat size, and landscape diversity influenced the abundance and a and b diversities of ants within tallgrass prairie habitat in Wisconsin. We used a null-model approach to examine how harvest and environmental factors influence b diversity. Following three years of treatments, we found that ant abundance was greater in harvested sites compared to control sites and ant abundance was positively correlated with soil sandiness. We also found that a diversity was lower in harvested sites compared to control sites and none of the measured environmental gradients influenced a diversity. The effects of harvest on a-diversity patterns may have been mediated through the competitive interactions of the two dominant ant species (Formica montana and Lasius neoniger). In contrast, b diversity (after adjusting for random effects and changes to a diversity) was higher in harvest sites compared to control sites, and variability in community composition was largely driven by the occurrence of rare species. The proportion of sand in the local habitat and habitat size positively influenced b diversity suggesting that community dissimilarity was due in part to environmental filtering and the size of species pools. Because biomass harvest had contrasting effects on ant a and b diversities, trade-offs in maintaining a vs. b diversity might need to be considered in land management and conservation efforts.

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Section: Harvest Effects On a Diversitysupporting

confidence: 85%