Seasonal Analysis of Taxonomic and Functional Diversity of Poneromorph Ant Assemblages in the Amazon Forest

Abstract

The present study aimed at assessing the effects of climate seasonality on poneromorph ants in the Brazilian Amazon, by studying variations in composition, richness, and taxonomic and functional diversity. The study was carried out in the Tapirapé-Aquiri National Forest, southeastern Pará State. We collected poneromorph ants in three areas of native forest with pitfall traps and sardine baits on the ground and vegetation, in two dry and rainy seasons. We collected 46 species of poneromorph ants, which belong to two subfamilies and eleven genera. The species composition, richness and taxonomic diversity did not vary significantly between seasons. There was no significant difference in the frequency of species of functional groups between dry and rainy seasons. There was no significant difference in the average richness and average diversity of functional groups between the dry and rainy seasons. In our study we found no seasonal differences in composition, taxonomic and functional richness and diversity of poneromorph ants in the Amazon, which is useful for future studies that aim at using those ants as bioindicators. In addition, the identification of the species made in the present study has special relevance as it contributes to advance the knowledge of poneromorph ant diversity in the Amazon.

Ant Species Richness Variation Mediated by Seasonality in Two Ant-Acacias from Oaxaca, Mexico

“…Ants are one of the most important groups of terrestrial organisms, their importance and contribution to ecological processes has been more than proven, and therefore represent a key to the understanding of ecosystems [18]. Temperature, precipitation and seasonality are included among the factors that affect ant richness [17] [18]. In previous studies where ant species richness has been tested as a function of seasonality, Sousa-Souto et al [18] found variations with respect to drought and rainy seasons, that is, for arboreal ants in Brazil, a greater richness was reported in the rainy season, in which the vegetation is abundant, and the canopies of the trees are connected.…”

“…All of these reports have been made considering only one sampling season and one sampling site, nevertheless studies focused on ants indicate that richness is a function of environmental parameters such as precipitation, temperature and seasonality [17] [18]. Until now, for the Acacia-Pseudomyrmex system no study has been performed that contemplates at least two seasons in order to evaluate possible changes in the composition of the ant species inhabitants.…”

Diversity and Guilds of Ants in Different Land-Use Systems in Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil

“…The chi-square test (χ 2 ) was used to compare frequency of ant species richness per guilds between land-use systems (e.g. Pereira et al, 2016).…”

“…The classification of ants in guilds followed Delabie et al (2000), Silvestre & Silva (2001), Groc et al (2014), and Pereira et al (2016). The following guilds were used: (1) arboreal omnivorous; (2) leafcutters;…”

Efeitos de atributos ambientais na biodiversidade de formigas sob diferentes usos do solo

“…Para a identificação das formigas em nível de gênero foram utilizadas chaves dicotômicas propostas em Baccaro et al (2015). A identificação em nível de espécie, quando possível, foi realizada pela utilização de chaves de identificação específicas para cada gênero e pela comparação com espécimes previamente identificados, assim como em Pereira et al (2016).…”