Journal
ECOLOGY LETTERS
Volume 24, Issue 5, Pages 1052-1062Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1111/ele.13725
Keywords
biological invasion; mutualism; ant-plant; photosynthesis; invasive ant
Categories
Funding
- University of Florida International Center RADS grant
- Smithsonian ForestGeo grant
- National Geographic Society Young Explorer grant
- National Science Foundation grant [NSF DEB 1556905]
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The study in East Africa showed that the invasion of Pheidole megacephala ants led to a significant decrease in photosynthesis of Acacia drepanolobium trees, with an interaction between invasive ants and large herbivores causing further declines in leaf- and canopy-level photosynthesis. The results suggest the potential of invasive species to alter ecosystem-level carbon fixation and other biogeochemical cycles.
Invasive ants shape assemblages and interactions of native species, but their effect on fundamental ecological processes is poorly understood. In East Africa, Pheidole megacephala ants have invaded monodominant stands of the ant-tree Acacia drepanolobium, extirpating native ant defenders and rendering trees vulnerable to canopy damage by vertebrate herbivores. We used experiments and observations to quantify direct and interactive effects of invasive ants and large herbivores on A. drepanolobium photosynthesis over a 2-year period. Trees that had been invaded for >= 5 years exhibited 69% lower whole-tree photosynthesis during key growing seasons, resulting from interaction between invasive ants and vertebrate herbivores that caused leaf- and canopy-level photosynthesis declines. We also surveyed trees shortly before and after invasion, finding that recent invasion induced only minor changes in leaf physiology. Our results from individual trees likely scale up, highlighting the potential of invasive species to alter ecosystem-level carbon fixation and other biogeochemical cycles.
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