You eat what you find - Local patterns in vegetation structure control diets of African fungus-growing termites

Fungus-growing termites and their symbiotic Termitomyces fungi are critically important carbon and nutrient recyclers in arid and semiarid environments of sub-Saharan Africa. A major proportion of plant litter produced in these ecosystems is decomposed within nest chambers of termite mounds, where temperature and humidity are kept optimal for the fungal symbionts. While fungus-growing termites are generally believed to exploit a wide range of different plant substrates, the actual diets of most species remain elusive. We studied dietary niches of two Macrotermes species across the semiarid savanna landscape in the Tsavo Ecosystem, southern Kenya, based on carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) stable isotopes in Termitomyces fungus combs. We applied Bayesian mixing models to determine the proportion of grass and woody plant matter in the combs, these being the two major food sources available for Macrotermes species in the region. Our results showed that both termite species, and colonies cultivating different Termitomyces fungi, occupied broad and largely overlapping isotopic niches, indicating no dietary specialization. Including laser scanning derived vegetation cover estimates to the dietary mixing model revealed that the proportion of woody plant matter in fungus combs increased with increasing woody plant cover in the nest surroundings. Nitrogen content of fungus combs was positively correlated with woody plant cover around the mounds and negatively correlated with the proportion of grass matter in the comb. Considering the high N demand of large Macrotermes colonies, woody plant matter seems to thus represent a more profitable food source than grass. As grass is also utilized by grazing mammals, and the availability of grass matter typically fluctuates over the year, mixed woodland-grasslands and bushlands seem to represent more favorable habitats for large Macrotermes colonies than open grasslands.

Automated summary

Fungus-growing termites and their symbiotic Termitomyces fungi play a crucial role in carbon and nutrient recycling in arid and semiarid environments of sub-Saharan Africa. This study found that two species of Macrotermes termites have broad dietary niches and do not show dietary specialization. Woody plant matter in the fungus combs increased with increasing woody plant cover in the nest surroundings. Woody plant matter seems to represent a more profitable food source for large colonies of Macrotermes termites.