期刊
JOURNAL OF TROPICAL ECOLOGY
卷 38, 期 2, 页码 71-78出版社
CAMBRIDGE UNIV PRESS
DOI: 10.1017/S0266467421000535
关键词
Blattodea; Cerrado; Formicidae; Isoptera; nocturnal; nutritional ecology; salt; semi arid
类别
资金
- project 'Passado, Presente e Futuro da Caatinga: Historia, Ecologia e Conservacao da Herpetofauna Frente as Mudancas Ambientais' (Programa de Apoio a Nucleos de Excelencia, FAPESQ/CNPq) [006/2018 - PRONEX 2018]
- CNPq [310942/2018-7, 304210/2017-0]
- Herbert McElveen Endowed Professorship, Louisiana Tech University
The nutritional ecology of Neotropical savannas, such as ants and termites, is influenced by sodium limitation. The study found that termites were more likely to occur in areas with sufficient sodium supply, specifically 1% NaCl plots. The usage of NaCl and sugar bait by ants was similar. Additionally, ants were more active at night.
Nutritional ecology of ropical ecosystems like Neotropical savannas, which are of high conservation concern, is understudied. Sodium is essential for heterotrophs but availability often falls short relative to plant consumer requirements. Savanna plant consumers like ants and termites should be sodium-limited due to high temperatures, nutrient-poor soils, and lack of oceanic sodium deposition. We tested the hypothesis that Neotropical savanna ants and termites are sodium-limited. Termites were tested by supplementing 0.25 m(2) plots with H2O (control), 0.1%, 0.5%, or 1.0% NaCl and measuring termite presence and artificial substrate mass loss after 1 week. Ants were tested by collecting ants that recruited to H2O (control), 0.1%, 0.5%, and 1.0% NaCl and 1.0%, 10%, and 20% sugar baits on paired diurnal-nocturnal transects. Termites were 16 times more likely to occur on 1% NaCl than H2O plots and wood-feeding termites were most frequent. However, the decomposition rate did not differ among treatments. Ant bait use increased with increasing NaCl concentration and 1% NaCl usage was similar to sugar bait usage. Ants were 3.7 times more active nocturnally than diurnally, but contrary to predictions bait type (water, sugar or NaCl) usage did not differ between day and night. Together, these results provide strong evidence of sodium limitation in Neotropical savannas.
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