Protective Benefits of Tending Ants to a Critically Endangered Butterfly

Hill, Geena M.; Trager, Matthew D.; Lucky, Andrea; Daniels, Jaret C.

doi:10.1093/jisesa/ieac068

Cited by 5 publications

References 52 publications

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Phylogeography of the imperiled Comanche Harvester Ant (Pogonomyrmex comanche)

Seal,

Matthews,

McDanield

et al. 2024

Insect. Soc.

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One of the few endangered ant species in North America is the Comanche Harvester Ant, Pogonomyrmex comanche. Despite its status, there is little known about its natural history throughout its range in the western Gulf Coastal Plain of North America. This study presents a regional phylogeographic analysis of P. comanche across sites in central and eastern Texas, southern Arkansas and central Oklahoma. By using COI genotyping, we discovered that the center of genetic diversity is found in central Texas, which is typical for many species that found refugia in the southern North America during Pleistocene glaciations. Although diversity was slightly lower in northern populations, there was no evidence of recent population expansion into northern latitudes. Rather, some deviations from neutrality were consistent with population contraction in the northern regions (Arkansas, Oklahoma). The high diversity and relative rarity of identical sequences among samples were also consistent with dispersal limitation. The exact mechanisms driving its decline are currently unknown, but a combination of dispersal limitation and habitat loss seem likely causes.

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Phylogeography of the imperiled Comanche Harvester Ant (Pogonomyrmex comanche)

Seal,

Matthews,

McDanield

et al. 2024

Insect. Soc.

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Estimating appropriate mowing timing for the population of an endangered butterfly inhabiting grassland patches in an agricultural landscape

Deto,

Miyashita

2023

J Insect Conserv

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It has been recognized that the timing of disturbance, in addition to its intensity and frequency, is important for the population dynamics of organisms because the impact of the disturbance depends on the life history stage at which it occurs (i.e., egg, larva, or adult). However, the effects of disturbance timing on consumer population dynamics have not been explored. This study simultaneously estimated the effects of mowing frequency and timing on the subpopulation dynamics of the endangered grassland butterfly, Plebejus argyrognomon. A two-year investigation of a metapopulation of P. argyrognomon consisting of approximately 150 habitat patches revealed that subpopulation size decreased with increasing mowing frequency, in addition to the positive effect of patch area and habitat connectivity. With the mowing frequency fixed at once per year, subpopulation size maximized when mowing occurred during the adult period in the previous generation, presumably due to reduced impact in the high-mobility adult stage. By mowing during this period, subpopulation size was maintained at several times higher than mowing during the larval period. It is suggested that disturbance timing should be incorporated into the conservation of metapopulations in human-managed landscapes. Implications for insect conservation Reducing mowing frequency is important for the conservation of P. argyrognomon. In addition, mowing during the adult stage is best suited for maintaining subpopulations.

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