Atta sexdens (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) nests are located under higher canopy cover in colombian amazon rainforests
Attini Ecological impact Leafcutter ant Vegetation gap Satellite image
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Leafcutter ants, Atta and Acromyrmex spp., are dominant herbivores and important ecosystem engineers in the Neotropics. Some rainforest leafcutter ant species seem to be found in higher densities at forest edges or gaps, which in some cases are actively created by themselves. This implies the presence of a lower than average canopy cover which, in addition to several ant activities, may lead to vegetation diversification during and after colony life. This study compared canopy cover at active Atta sexdens nests and at random sites in three habitat types in the Colombian Amazon for the years 2008, 2006 and 1992. Canopy cover at nests and random sites was measured with a densiometer in 2008 and estimated by means of satellite images in 2006 and 1992. Contrary to expectation, canopy cover was found consistently higher at A. sexdens nests than at random sites. This and other nest aspects differentiate A. sexdens from other rainforest Atta species. Therefore, it is argued how A. sexdens is thought to affect rainforest vegetation differently as well.
VAN-GILS, H. A. J. A. (2012). Atta sexdens (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) nests are located under higher canopy cover in colombian amazon rainforests. Revista Colombiana De Entomología, 38(1), 114–117. https://doi.org/10.25100/socolen.v38i1.8967
ALVARADO, A.; BERISH, C.W.; PERALTA, F. 1981. Leafcutter ant (Atta cephalotes) influence on the morphology of Andepts in Costa Rica. Soil Science Society of America Journal 45: 790-794.
BRADy, N.C.;WEIL, R.R. 2002. The nature and properties of soils. 13th Edition. Pearson Education, U.S.A. 936 p.
CHERRETT, J.M. 1968. Some aspects of the distribution of pest species of the leafcutting ants in the Caribbean. Proceedings of the American Society of Horticultural Science of Tropical Regions 12: 295-310.
CORRêA, M.M.; SILVA, P.S.D.; WIRTH, R.; TABARELLI, M.; LEAL, I.R.2010. How leafcutting ants impact forests: drastic nest effects on light environment and plant assemblages. Oecologia 162: 103-115.
DELLALUCIA, T.M.C. 2003. Hormigas de importancia económica en la región Neotropical. pp. 337349. En: Fernández, F. (Ed.). Introducción a las hormigas de la región Neotropical. Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander Von Humboldt, Bogota, Colombia. 424 p.
EIDMANN, H. 1932. Beiträge zur Kenntnis der Biologie, insbesondere des Nestbaues der Blattschneiderameise Atta sexdens L. Zeitschrift für Morphologie und Oekologie der Tiere 25:154-183.
ENGLUND, S. R.; O´BRIEN, J. J.; CLARK, D. B. 2000. Evaluation of digital and film hemispherical photography and spherical densiometry for measuring forest light environments. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 30: 19992005.
ESRI INC. 2006. ArcMap versión 9.2. www.esri.com.
FARJIBRENER, A. G. 2001. Why are leafcutting ants more common in early secondary forests than in oldgrowth tropical forests? An evaluation of the palatable forage hypothesis. Oikos 92: 169-177.
FARJIBRENER, A. G. 2005. The effect of abandoned leafcutting ant nests on plant assemblage composition in a tropical rainforest of Costa Rica. Écoscience12 (5): 554-560.
FARJIBRENER, A. G.; ILLES, A. E. 2000. Do leafcutting ants make “bottomup” gaps in neotropical forests?: a critical review of the evidence. Ecology Letters 3: 219-227.
FARJIBRENER, A. G.; MEDINA, C. A. 2000. The importance of where to dump the refuse: Seed banks and fine roots in nests of the leafcutting ants Atta cephalotes and Atta colombica. Biotropica 32: 120-126.
FOWLER, H. G.; CLAVER, S. 1991. Leafcutter ant assemblies: effects of latitude, vegetation and behaviors. pp. 5159. En: Huxley C. R.; Cutler D. F. Ant plant interactions Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. 601 p.
FOWLER, H. G.; PAGANI, M. I.; SILVA, O. A.; FORTI, L. C.; SILVA, V. P.; VASCONCELOS, H. L. 1989. A pest is a pest is a pest? The dilemma of Neotropical leafcutting ants: Keystone taxa of natural ecosystems. Environmental Management 13: 671-675.
GARRETTSON, M.; STETZEL, J. F.; HALPERN, B. S.; ERAN, D. J.; LUCEy, B. T.; MCKONE, M. J. 1998. Diversity and abundance of understorey plants on active and abandoned nests of leafcutting ants (Atta cephalotes) in a Costa Rican rain forest. Journal of Tropical Ecology 14: 1726.
GONçALVES, C. R. 1967. As formigas cortadeiras da Amazônia, dos generos “Atta” Fabr. e “Acromyrmex” Mayr (Hym., Formicidae). Atas Simposio Biota Amazônica 5 (Zoologia): 181202. HAINES, B. L. 1978. Element and energy flows through colonies of the leafcutting ant, Atta colombica, in Panama. Biotropica. 10: 270-277.
HÖLLDOBLER, B.; WILSON, E. O. 1990. The ants. Cambridge: Harvard University. 732 p.
HUDSON, T. M.; TURNER, B. J.; HERZ, H.; ROBINSON, J. S. 2009. Temporal patterns of nutrient availability around nests of leafcutting ants (Atta colombica) in secondary moist tropical forest. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 41: 1088-1093.
HULLSANDERS, H. M.; HOWARD J. J. 2003. Impact of Atta colombica colonies on understory vegetation and light availability in a Neotropical forest. Biotropica 35: 441-445.
INSTITUTO GEOGRáFICO AGUSTíN CODAZZI (IGAC). 1997. Zonificación ambiental para el plan modelo ColomboBrasilero. (Eje ApaporisTabatinga: PAT). Linotipia Bolívar, Santafé de Bogotá, Colombia. 410 p.
JAFFE, K.; VILELA, E. 1989. On nest densities of the leafcutting ant Atta cephalotes in tropical primary forest. Biotropica 21: 234236.
LAPOINTE, S. L.; SERRANO, M. S.; JONES, P. G. 1998. Microgeographic and vertical distribution of Acromyrmex landolti (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) nests in a Neotropical savanna. Environmental Entomology 27: 636-641.
MEyER, S.T. 2008. Ecosystem engineering in fragmented forests: edge mediated hyper abundance of leafcutting ants and resulting impacts on forest structure, microclimate and regeneration. Ph. D. dissertation, University of Kaiserslautern, Kaiserslautern, Germany. 159 p.
MEyER, S. T.; LEAL, I. R.; WIRTH, R. 2009. Persisting hyperabundance of keystone herbivores (Atta spp.) at the edge of an old Brazilian Atlantic forest fragment. Biotropica 41 (6): 711-716.
MOUTINHO, P. R.; NEPSTAD, D. C.; DAVIDSON, E. A. 2003. Influence of leafcutting ant nests on secondary forest growth and soil properties in Amazonia. Ecology 84 (5): 1265-1276.
PEñALOZA, C.; FARJIBRENER, A. G. 2003.The importance of treefall gaps as foraging sites for leafcutting ants depends on forest age. Journal of Tropical Ecology 19: 603-605.
PINILLA, M. C. 2004. Uso del paisaje en el sector sur del Parque Natural Nacional Amacayacu. Cuadernos de Desarrollo Rural 53: 133156.
RIAñO, E. 2003. Organizando su espacio, construyendo su territorio. Transformaciones de los asentamientos Ticuna en la ribera del Amazonas colombiano. Unibiblos, Bogotá D.C., Colombia. 236 p.
SCHOEREDER, J. H. 1998. Nest density of leafcutting ants in natural ecosystems. Revista Brasileira de Entomología 41: 233-234.
SCHOEREDER, J. H.; HOWSE, P. E. 1998. Do trees benefit from nutrientrich patches created by leafcutting ants? Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environment 33: 111-115.
SILVA, P. S. D.; BIEBER, A. G. D.; LEAL, I. R.; WIRTH, R.; TABARELLI, M. 2009. Decreasing abundance of leafcutting ants across a chrono sequence of advancing Atlantic forest regeneration. Journal of Tropical Ecology 25: 223-227.
SPSS INC. 2006. SPSS version 15.0.1. Chicago, IL, U.S.A. STERNBERG, L.; PINZÓN, M. C.; MOREIRA, M. Z.; MOUTINHO, P.; ROJAS, E. I.; HERRE, E. A. 2007. Plants use macronutrients accumulated in leafcutting ant nests. Proceedings of the Royal Society Biological Sciences Series B 274: 315-321.
TURNER, I. M. 2004. The ecology of trees in the tropical rainforest. Cambridge Tropical Biology Series, Cambridge University Press, UK. 298 p.
URBAS, P.; ARAúJO JR., M. V.; LEAL, I. R.; WIRTH, R. 2007. Cutting more from cut forests: Edge effects on foraging and herbivory of leafcutting ants in Brazil. Biotropica 39: 489495. VAN GILS, H. A. J. A. 2011. Los factores ambientales en relación con la hormiga arriera (Atta sexdens) en el sur del trapecio amazónico, Colombia. Ph.D. dissertation, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Colombia. 236 p.
VAN GILS, H. A. J. A.; GAIGL, A.; GÓMEZ, L. E. 2010. The relationship between soil variables and leafcutter ant (Atta sexdens) nest distribution in the Colombian Amazon. Insectes Sociaux 57: 487-494.
VAN GILS, H. A. J. A.; GÓMEZ, L. E.; GAIGL, A. 2011. Leafcutter ant (Atta sexdens L.) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Demography in the Colombian Amazon: An Evaluation of the Palatable Forage Hypothesis. Environmental Entomology 40 (4): 770-776.
VASCONCELOS, H. L. 1990. Habitat selection by the queens of the leafcutting ant Atta sexdens L. in Brazil. Journal of Tropical Ecology 6: 249-252.
VASCONCELOS, H. L. 1997. Foraging activity of an Amazoni an leafcutting ant: responses to changes in the availability of woody plants and to previous plant damage. Oecologia 112: 370-378.
VASCONCELOS, H. L.; CHERRETT, J. M. 1997. Leafcutting ants and early forest regeneration in central Amazonia: Effects of herbivory on tree seedling establishment. Journal of Tropical Ecology 13: 357-370.
VERCHOT, L. V.; MOUTINHO, P. R.; DAVIDSON, E. A. 2003. Leafcutting (Atta sexdens) and nutrient cycling: deep soil inorganic nitrogen stocks, mineralization, and nitrification in Eastern Amazonia. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 35: 1219-1222.
WIRTH, R.; BEySCHLAG, W.; RyEL, R.; HERZ, H.; HÖLLDOBLER, B. 2003. Herbivory of leafcutting ants: a case study on Atta colombica in the tropical rainforest of Panama. SpringerVerlag, Berlin, Heidelberg, Germany. 233 p.
WIRTH, R.; MEyER, S. T.; ALMEIDA, W. R.; ARAúJO, M. V.; BARBOSA, V. S.; LEAL, I. R. 2007. Increasing densities of leafcutting ants (Atta spp.) with proximity to the edge in a Brazilian Atlantic forest. Journal of Tropical Ecology 23: 501-505.
BRADy, N.C.;WEIL, R.R. 2002. The nature and properties of soils. 13th Edition. Pearson Education, U.S.A. 936 p.
CHERRETT, J.M. 1968. Some aspects of the distribution of pest species of the leafcutting ants in the Caribbean. Proceedings of the American Society of Horticultural Science of Tropical Regions 12: 295-310.
CORRêA, M.M.; SILVA, P.S.D.; WIRTH, R.; TABARELLI, M.; LEAL, I.R.2010. How leafcutting ants impact forests: drastic nest effects on light environment and plant assemblages. Oecologia 162: 103-115.
DELLALUCIA, T.M.C. 2003. Hormigas de importancia económica en la región Neotropical. pp. 337349. En: Fernández, F. (Ed.). Introducción a las hormigas de la región Neotropical. Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Biológicos Alexander Von Humboldt, Bogota, Colombia. 424 p.
EIDMANN, H. 1932. Beiträge zur Kenntnis der Biologie, insbesondere des Nestbaues der Blattschneiderameise Atta sexdens L. Zeitschrift für Morphologie und Oekologie der Tiere 25:154-183.
ENGLUND, S. R.; O´BRIEN, J. J.; CLARK, D. B. 2000. Evaluation of digital and film hemispherical photography and spherical densiometry for measuring forest light environments. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 30: 19992005.
ESRI INC. 2006. ArcMap versión 9.2. www.esri.com.
FARJIBRENER, A. G. 2001. Why are leafcutting ants more common in early secondary forests than in oldgrowth tropical forests? An evaluation of the palatable forage hypothesis. Oikos 92: 169-177.
FARJIBRENER, A. G. 2005. The effect of abandoned leafcutting ant nests on plant assemblage composition in a tropical rainforest of Costa Rica. Écoscience12 (5): 554-560.
FARJIBRENER, A. G.; ILLES, A. E. 2000. Do leafcutting ants make “bottomup” gaps in neotropical forests?: a critical review of the evidence. Ecology Letters 3: 219-227.
FARJIBRENER, A. G.; MEDINA, C. A. 2000. The importance of where to dump the refuse: Seed banks and fine roots in nests of the leafcutting ants Atta cephalotes and Atta colombica. Biotropica 32: 120-126.
FOWLER, H. G.; CLAVER, S. 1991. Leafcutter ant assemblies: effects of latitude, vegetation and behaviors. pp. 5159. En: Huxley C. R.; Cutler D. F. Ant plant interactions Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK. 601 p.
FOWLER, H. G.; PAGANI, M. I.; SILVA, O. A.; FORTI, L. C.; SILVA, V. P.; VASCONCELOS, H. L. 1989. A pest is a pest is a pest? The dilemma of Neotropical leafcutting ants: Keystone taxa of natural ecosystems. Environmental Management 13: 671-675.
GARRETTSON, M.; STETZEL, J. F.; HALPERN, B. S.; ERAN, D. J.; LUCEy, B. T.; MCKONE, M. J. 1998. Diversity and abundance of understorey plants on active and abandoned nests of leafcutting ants (Atta cephalotes) in a Costa Rican rain forest. Journal of Tropical Ecology 14: 1726.
GONçALVES, C. R. 1967. As formigas cortadeiras da Amazônia, dos generos “Atta” Fabr. e “Acromyrmex” Mayr (Hym., Formicidae). Atas Simposio Biota Amazônica 5 (Zoologia): 181202. HAINES, B. L. 1978. Element and energy flows through colonies of the leafcutting ant, Atta colombica, in Panama. Biotropica. 10: 270-277.
HÖLLDOBLER, B.; WILSON, E. O. 1990. The ants. Cambridge: Harvard University. 732 p.
HUDSON, T. M.; TURNER, B. J.; HERZ, H.; ROBINSON, J. S. 2009. Temporal patterns of nutrient availability around nests of leafcutting ants (Atta colombica) in secondary moist tropical forest. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 41: 1088-1093.
HULLSANDERS, H. M.; HOWARD J. J. 2003. Impact of Atta colombica colonies on understory vegetation and light availability in a Neotropical forest. Biotropica 35: 441-445.
INSTITUTO GEOGRáFICO AGUSTíN CODAZZI (IGAC). 1997. Zonificación ambiental para el plan modelo ColomboBrasilero. (Eje ApaporisTabatinga: PAT). Linotipia Bolívar, Santafé de Bogotá, Colombia. 410 p.
JAFFE, K.; VILELA, E. 1989. On nest densities of the leafcutting ant Atta cephalotes in tropical primary forest. Biotropica 21: 234236.
LAPOINTE, S. L.; SERRANO, M. S.; JONES, P. G. 1998. Microgeographic and vertical distribution of Acromyrmex landolti (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) nests in a Neotropical savanna. Environmental Entomology 27: 636-641.
MEyER, S.T. 2008. Ecosystem engineering in fragmented forests: edge mediated hyper abundance of leafcutting ants and resulting impacts on forest structure, microclimate and regeneration. Ph. D. dissertation, University of Kaiserslautern, Kaiserslautern, Germany. 159 p.
MEyER, S. T.; LEAL, I. R.; WIRTH, R. 2009. Persisting hyperabundance of keystone herbivores (Atta spp.) at the edge of an old Brazilian Atlantic forest fragment. Biotropica 41 (6): 711-716.
MOUTINHO, P. R.; NEPSTAD, D. C.; DAVIDSON, E. A. 2003. Influence of leafcutting ant nests on secondary forest growth and soil properties in Amazonia. Ecology 84 (5): 1265-1276.
PEñALOZA, C.; FARJIBRENER, A. G. 2003.The importance of treefall gaps as foraging sites for leafcutting ants depends on forest age. Journal of Tropical Ecology 19: 603-605.
PINILLA, M. C. 2004. Uso del paisaje en el sector sur del Parque Natural Nacional Amacayacu. Cuadernos de Desarrollo Rural 53: 133156.
RIAñO, E. 2003. Organizando su espacio, construyendo su territorio. Transformaciones de los asentamientos Ticuna en la ribera del Amazonas colombiano. Unibiblos, Bogotá D.C., Colombia. 236 p.
SCHOEREDER, J. H. 1998. Nest density of leafcutting ants in natural ecosystems. Revista Brasileira de Entomología 41: 233-234.
SCHOEREDER, J. H.; HOWSE, P. E. 1998. Do trees benefit from nutrientrich patches created by leafcutting ants? Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environment 33: 111-115.
SILVA, P. S. D.; BIEBER, A. G. D.; LEAL, I. R.; WIRTH, R.; TABARELLI, M. 2009. Decreasing abundance of leafcutting ants across a chrono sequence of advancing Atlantic forest regeneration. Journal of Tropical Ecology 25: 223-227.
SPSS INC. 2006. SPSS version 15.0.1. Chicago, IL, U.S.A. STERNBERG, L.; PINZÓN, M. C.; MOREIRA, M. Z.; MOUTINHO, P.; ROJAS, E. I.; HERRE, E. A. 2007. Plants use macronutrients accumulated in leafcutting ant nests. Proceedings of the Royal Society Biological Sciences Series B 274: 315-321.
TURNER, I. M. 2004. The ecology of trees in the tropical rainforest. Cambridge Tropical Biology Series, Cambridge University Press, UK. 298 p.
URBAS, P.; ARAúJO JR., M. V.; LEAL, I. R.; WIRTH, R. 2007. Cutting more from cut forests: Edge effects on foraging and herbivory of leafcutting ants in Brazil. Biotropica 39: 489495. VAN GILS, H. A. J. A. 2011. Los factores ambientales en relación con la hormiga arriera (Atta sexdens) en el sur del trapecio amazónico, Colombia. Ph.D. dissertation, Facultad de Agronomía, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Colombia. 236 p.
VAN GILS, H. A. J. A.; GAIGL, A.; GÓMEZ, L. E. 2010. The relationship between soil variables and leafcutter ant (Atta sexdens) nest distribution in the Colombian Amazon. Insectes Sociaux 57: 487-494.
VAN GILS, H. A. J. A.; GÓMEZ, L. E.; GAIGL, A. 2011. Leafcutter ant (Atta sexdens L.) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Demography in the Colombian Amazon: An Evaluation of the Palatable Forage Hypothesis. Environmental Entomology 40 (4): 770-776.
VASCONCELOS, H. L. 1990. Habitat selection by the queens of the leafcutting ant Atta sexdens L. in Brazil. Journal of Tropical Ecology 6: 249-252.
VASCONCELOS, H. L. 1997. Foraging activity of an Amazoni an leafcutting ant: responses to changes in the availability of woody plants and to previous plant damage. Oecologia 112: 370-378.
VASCONCELOS, H. L.; CHERRETT, J. M. 1997. Leafcutting ants and early forest regeneration in central Amazonia: Effects of herbivory on tree seedling establishment. Journal of Tropical Ecology 13: 357-370.
VERCHOT, L. V.; MOUTINHO, P. R.; DAVIDSON, E. A. 2003. Leafcutting (Atta sexdens) and nutrient cycling: deep soil inorganic nitrogen stocks, mineralization, and nitrification in Eastern Amazonia. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 35: 1219-1222.
WIRTH, R.; BEySCHLAG, W.; RyEL, R.; HERZ, H.; HÖLLDOBLER, B. 2003. Herbivory of leafcutting ants: a case study on Atta colombica in the tropical rainforest of Panama. SpringerVerlag, Berlin, Heidelberg, Germany. 233 p.
WIRTH, R.; MEyER, S. T.; ALMEIDA, W. R.; ARAúJO, M. V.; BARBOSA, V. S.; LEAL, I. R. 2007. Increasing densities of leafcutting ants (Atta spp.) with proximity to the edge in a Brazilian Atlantic forest. Journal of Tropical Ecology 23: 501-505.
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