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Ants Under Climate Change at Harvard Forest and Duke Forest 2009-2015
Experimental field studies are needed to understand the consequences of global climatic change for local community structure and associated ecosystem processes. We are using 5-m diameter open-top environmental chambers and 1m pvc minichambers to simultaneously manipulate air and soil temperatures at the Harvard Forest and at the Duke Forest in North Carolina. These field manipulations are designed to reveal the effects of temperature increases on the populations, communities, and associated ecosystem services of assemblages of ground-foraging ants. Ants are a model taxon for studying effects of global climatic change because they comprise the dominant fraction of animal biomass in many terrestrial communities and because they provide essential ecosystem services, including soil turnover, decomposition, and seed dispersal. The experiment is designed to test three predictions: 1. Projected atmospheric warming will lead to declines in ant species’ abundances at the warmer, southern extent of their ranges in the US. Conversely, projected atmospheric warming will lead to increases in abundance or range extensions of ant species at the cooler, northern extent of their ranges in the US. 2. Warming will change the relative abundance and composition of ant communities, and will lead to the loss of ant biodiversity. 3. Warming will potentially diminish ecosystem processes and services provided by ants, particularly with respect to the dispersal of seeds. To explore these, we are conducting two experiments. In one experiment, twelve open-top chambers at each site which will each be exposed air temperatures ranging from 1.5 to 7 deg C above ambient; soil temperatures will be increased simultaneously from 0 to ~ 2 deg C. After an initial year of pre-intervention measurements, the experiment will run for 3 consecutive years of continuous warming. In the second experiment, shade cloth and plastic greenhouse sheeting will be used to increase or decrease temperature by 0.5 deg C in
Ants and Ecosystem Function in Hemlock Removal Experiment at Harvard Forest 2006-2014
Eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) is a foundation species in eastern North American forests. Hemlock stands host unique assemblages of flora and fauna, and the structure of these assemblages is expected to change as hemlock declines due to infestation by the hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae) and is removed by pre-emptive salvage logging. A 2003 survey of hemlock stands in central Connecticut and Massachusetts showed that ant species richness and abundance is substantially greater in logged and adelgid-infested hemlock stands than it is in intact hemlock stands (see HF065) and we hypothesized that we would see similar changes in ant species diversity following application of treatments in the Hemlock Removal Experiment at the Simes Tract (see HF118). We further hypothesized that because ants are known to modulate ecosystem function in other habitats that observed changes in ant species diversity would be accompanied by changes in ecosystem processes including soil respiration rate and nitrogen availability. In April 2006, we established a set of sub-plots in all eight canopy manipulation plots of the Hemlock Removal Experiment. In each canopy manipulation plot, we installed two ant exclosure plots, two disturbance control plots, and two control plots. Ant species richness and abundance, as well as effectiveness of the exclosures, is monitored with pitfall traps monthly during the summer. Soil nitrogen availability is measured using resins that are collected every three months, and soil respiration is measured bi-weekly during the growing season.
Ant Diversity and Vegetation Composition in Hemlock Removal Experiment at Harvard Forest 2006
Ants comprise a considerable amount of animal biomass in terrestrial ecosystems and play major roles in ecological processes ranging from seed dispersal to soil turnover. Invasion by the hemlock woolly adelgid will transform late-successional hemlock forests into earlier successional mixed hardwood-white pine forests or red-maple wetlands. Understanding how ant assemblages vary in different habitat types allows for predictions of how hemlock decline could alter the composition of ant assemblages, with implications for a wide range of ecosystem processes. An ongoing study at the Simes Tract of Harvard Forest is documenting the effects of invasion and land-use history on ant biodiversity. Surveys from 2003 to 2005 focused on ant structure in hemlock and hardwood microhabitats in the Harvard Forest Hemlock Removal Experiment, in which hemlock forest response to deforestation by the hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae) and to selective logging is being examined (Ellison et al. 2005). In the summer of 2006, we surveyed a greater range of microhabitat types with two objectives. First, to collect rare or elusive species in hemlock and hardwood stands that may have gone uncollected in previous years. Second, to sample forest communities not included in previous years - white pine, swamp, and rocky slope - for ant species unique to these microhabitats. We found fourteen newly documented species of ants in the Simes Tract - nine of which were in an open, swamp. Aphaenogaster rudis and Camponotus pennsylvanicus were the only ant species found in all microhabitat types. In a canonical correspondence analysis, A. rudis and C. pennsylvanicus were associated most strongly with hemlock stands and low species richness of understory plants.
Ant Distribution and Abundance in New England 1990-2014
The Ants of New England project is a multi-investigator, multi-year effort to document the occurrence, distribution, and relative abundance of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in the six New England states (Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine). The project was initiated in 1999 as a more narrowly-focused effort aimed at determining ant species diversity in bogs and surrounding forests in Massachusetts and Vermont using standard methods (pitfall trapping, timed baiting, litter collection, and visual searching; Gotelli and Ellison 2002, Ellison et al. 2002). Subsequent detailed analysis of collection methods revealed that reliable estimates of ant species occurrences, distribution, and abundance in this geographic region could be obtained using only visual searching and litter collection (Ellison et al. 2007). Following this analysis, we carried out an initial survey of ant occurrences, distribution, and abundances in Massachusetts in 2007. The 2007 survey was focused on ants living in natural community types as defined by the Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program (Swain and Kearsley 2001) and located in properties of high conservation and education value owned by Massachusetts Audubon Society and The Trustees of Reservations. The primary goals for the 2007 survey were: (1) To describe and quantify patterns of distribution and abundance of ants across Massachusetts and to determine the regional "species pool" of ants that could ground local studies on ants (for example, the Warm Ants project at Harvard Forest). (2) To provide a baseline from which to assess long-term effects of climate change on species distributions. (3) To develop a set of indicator species to be used to determine efficacy of ongoing and proposed management strategies and to reveal effects of future disturbances and habitat degradation. (4) To compare with ongoing or planned quantitative surveys of birds and plants at sites owned by conse
Ant Mesocosm Experiment in Harvard Forest Lath Houses 2011-2012
Direct and indirect consequences of global warming on ecosystem functions and processes mediated by invertebrates remain understudied but are likely to have major impacts on ecosystems in the future. Among animals, invertebrates are taxonomically diverse, responsive to temperature changes, and play major ecological roles which also respond to temperature changes. We used a mesocosm experiment to evaluate impacts of two warming treatments (+3.5 and + 5 °C, set points) and the presence and absence of the ant Formica subsericea (a major mediator of processes in north-temperate ecosystems) on decomposition rate, soil movement, soil respiration, and nitrogen availability. Replicate 19-Litre mesocosms were placed outdoors in lath houses and continuously warmed for 30 days in 2011 and 85 days in 2012. Warming treatments mimicked expected temperature increases for future climates in eastern North America. In both years, the amount of soil displaced and soil respiration increased in the warming and ant presence treatments (soil movement: 73 to 119%; soil respiration: 37 to 48% relative to the control treatments without ants). Decomposition rate and nitrogen availability tended to decrease in the warmest treatments (decomposition rate: -26 to -30%; nitrate availability: -11 to -42%). Path analyses indicated that ants had significant short term direct and indirect effects on the studied ecosystem processes. These results suggest that ants may be moving more soil and building deeper nests to escape increasing temperatures, but warming may also influence their direct and indirect effects on soil ecosystem processes.
Detection Probability of Red Wood Ants in Friedenweiler, Germany 2015
Estimation of population sizes and species ranges is central to population and conservation biology. It is widely appreciated that imperfect detection of mobile animals must be accounted for when estimating population size from presence-absence data. Sessile organisms also are imperfectly detected, but correction for detection probability in estimating their population sizes is rare. We illustrate challenges of detection probability and population estimation of sessile organisms using censuses of red wood ant (Formica rufa-group) nests as a case study. These ants, widespread in the northern hemisphere, can make large (up to 2m tall), highly visible nests. Using data from a two-day mapping campaign by eight individuals of 147 ant nests spread across sixteen 3600-m2 plots in the Black Forest region of southwest Germany, we developed a Bayesian model for quantifying detection probability of sessile organisms. Detection probabilities by individual observers of red wood ant nests ranged from 0.31 – 0.56, and depended on experience of the observers, size and density of nests, and habitat characteristics. Robust estimation of population density of sessile organisms—even highly apparent ones such as red wood ant nests—requires unbiased estimation of detection probability, just as it does when estimating population density of rare or cryptic species.
Red Wood-Ant Nests and Fault-Related Methane Micro-Seepage 2016
We measured methane (CH4) and stable carbon isotope of methane (ẟ13C-CH4) concentrations in ambient air and within a red wood-ant (RWA; Formica polyctena) nest in the Neuwied Basin (Germany) using high-resolution in-situ sampling to detect microbial, thermogenic, and abiotic fault-related micro-seepage of CH4. Methane degassing from RWA nests was not synchronized with earth tides, nor was it influenced by micro-earthquake degassing or concomitantly measured RWA activity. Two ẟ13C-CH4 signatures were identified in nest gas: −69‰ and −37‰. The lower peak was attributed to microbial decomposition of organic matter within the RWA nest, in line with previous observations that RWA nests are hot-spots of microbial CH4. The higher peak has not been reported in previous studies. We attribute this peak to fault-related CH4 emissions moving via fault networks into the RWA nest, which could originate either from thermogenic or abiotic CH4 formation. Sources of these micro-seepages could be Devonian schists, iron-bearing “Klerf Schichten,” or overlapping micro-seepage of magmatic CH4 from the Eifel plume. Given the abundance of RWA nests on the landscape, their role as sources of microbial CH4 and biological indicators for abiotically-derived CH4 should be included in estimation of methane emissions that are contributing to climatic change.
Ants of the CTFS-ForestGEO Plot at Harvard Forest 2018
Foundation species in forests are hypothesized to control the diversity of associated organisms and modulate core ecosystem processes. At Harvard Forest, eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) is a foundation species, but its relationship to local biodiversity has not been explored in detail. This project examined co-occurrence relationships (using codispersion statistics) between forest trees and ants in the 35-hectare Forest Dynamics Plot in the Prospect Hill tract at Harvard Forest ("megaplot"), in which more than 100,000 woody stems have been identified, mapped, and measured.
Geogenic Gases in a Red Wood-Ant Nest and Soil in the Neuwied Basin, Germany 2016
Geochemical tracers of crustal fluids (CO2, He, Rn) provide a useful tool for the identification of buried fault structures. We acquired geochemical data during 7 months of continual sampling to identify causal processes underlying correlations between ambient air and degassing patterns of three gases (CO2, He, Rn) in a nest of red wood ants (Formica polyctena; “RWA”) and the soil at Goloring in the Neuwied Basin, a part of the East Eifel Volcanic Field (EEVF). We explored whether temporal relations and degassing rhythms in soil and nest gas concentrations could be indicators of hidden faults through which the gases migrate to the surface from depth. In nest gas, the coupled system of CO2-He and He concentrations exceeding atmospheric standards 2-3 fold suggested that RWA nests may be biological indicators of hidden degassing faults and fractures at small scales. Equivalently periodic degassing infradian rhythms in the RWA nest, soil, and three nearby mineral springs suggested NW-SE and NE-SW tectonic linkages. Because volcanic activity in the EEVF is dormant, more detailed information on the EEVF’s tectonic, magmatic, and degassing systems and its active tectonic fault zones are needed. Such data could provide additional insights into earthquake processes that are related to magmatic processes at the lower crust.
Rhythms and Nocturnal Activities of Wood Ants in the Neuwied Basin, Germany 2010-2016
In situ activity patterns of two Formica-rufa group species (F. pratensis; F. polyctena) were continuously studied at four different red wood-ant nests during six months in each of the years 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2016 and related to weather factors and variations of the Earth’s magnetic field. In situ activity patterns of both species are similarly periodic and exhibit ultradian, and short and long infradian rhythms under natural Light:Dark conditions. Crepuscular and nocturnal activities ≤ 4-hr long were observed in both species, especially at the new moon and first quarter after the astronomical twilight in a period of darkness in fall. We hypothesize that local variability in Earth’s magnetic field affects long-term activity patterns, whereas humidity and temperature were more strongly associated with ultradian rhythms (less than 20 hr).
Ants in an Induced Drought Experiment at the Caxiuana National Forest in Brazil 2011-2012
Environmental change scenarios caused by low precipitation forecast species loss in tropical regions. We used one year of data from a rainwater exclusion experiment in primary Amazonian rainforest to test whether induced water stress, and covarying changes in humidity, soil respiration, and tree species richness, size, and total biomass and its diversity affected species richness and composition (relative abundance) of ground-dwelling ants. Induced drought reduced ant richness, whereas increased humidity and variability in biomass increased it. Species composition differed between control and rainfall-excluded plots. Occurrence of many ant species was strongly reduced, but some generalist groups of ants were favored by induced drought. The expected loss of ant species and changes in ant species composition in tropical forests likely will lead to cascading effects on ecosystem processes and services they mediate.
Ants of the Adirondack Mountains High Peaks 2016
The ants of the Adirondack Mountains are rarely sampled, and it was of interest to inventory their diversity as part of a general biodiversity survey of the Adirondack Park in New York State. A first set of collections were done in 2016 in the “High Peaks” region (mountains over 1200 meters (4000 feet) high). Ants were collected haphazardly from nests encountered by Adirondack Mountain trail stewards during June and July 2016 when they were doing regular botanical inventories and trail maintenance. Eleven species were collected, with the cold-climate species Formica neorufibarbis and Camponotus herculeanus accounting for 75% of the nests encountered. The species composition of ants in the Adirondack High Peaks is similar to that of other alpine and subalpine habitats in adjacent New England.
Ant Resource Detection Distance at the Caxiuana National Forest in Brazil 2017-2018
Environmental change scenarios of low precipitation forecast species loss in tropical regions. These losses can affect generalist species that provide important ecosystem services, such as controlling the rate at which nutrients become available for uptake by other organisms in tropical forests. Here, we use a long-term rainwater exclusion experiment in primary Amazonian rainforest to test whether induced water stress affects the detection distance of food resources (baits) in a generalist ant guild (number of colonies, richness, and composition) that remove resources on the ground. We found that (i) overall the distance of resource removal by generalist ants did not change with drought; (ii) however, comparing ant species that occurred in drought-induced and control environments, workers walked shorter distances in the drought habitat; (iii) the number of resources detected by ant colonies in the drought-induced habitat decreased by 50%. Although generalist ants are considered resilient to habitat disturbance, the effect of reduced rainfall can negatively affect the services mediated by them. The rate of removal and consumption of resources in tropical forests may be related to abundance of generalist ants; losses in both nest density and walking distances may cause cascading effects on ecosystem processes and the services they mediate.
Inventory of Ants at the Black Rock Forest in Cornwall NY 2006-2015
Ants are key indicators of ecological change, but few studies have investigated how ant assemblages may respond to dramatic changes in vegetation structure in temperate forests. Pests and pathogens are causing widespread loss of dominant canopy tree species; ant species composition and abundance may be very sensitive to such losses. Prior to the experimental removal of red oak trees to simulate effects of sudden oak death and examine the long-term impact of oak loss at the Black Rock Forest (Cornwall, New York), we carried out a rapid assessment of the ant assemblage in the 10-hectare experimental area. We also determined the efficacy in a northern temperate forest of five different collecting methods - pitfall traps, litter samples, tuna-fish and cookie baits, and hand collection - routinely used to sample ants in tropical systems. A total of 33 species in 14 genera were collected and identified; the myrmecines Aphaenogaster rudis and Myrmica punctiventris, and the formicine Formica neogagates were the most common and abundant species encountered. Ninety-four percent (31 of 33) of the species were collected by litter sampling and structured hand sampling together, and we conclude that in combination, these two methods are sufficient to assess species richness and composition of ant assemblages in northern temperate forests. Using new, unbiased estimators, we project that 38-58 ant species are likely to occur at Black Rock Forest. Loss of oak from these forests may favor Camponotus species that nest in decomposing wood and open-habitat specialists in the genus Lasius.
Ant Assemblages in Hemlock Removal Experiment at Harvard Forest since 2003
Ants comprise a considerable amount of animal biomass in terrestrial ecosystems and play major roles in ecological processes ranging from seed dispersal to soil turnover. Invasion by the hemlock woolly adelgid will transform late-successional hemlock forests into earlier successional mixed hardwood - white pine forests or red-maple wetlands. Understanding how ant assemblages vary in different habitat types allows for predictions of how hemlock decline could alter the composition of ant assemblages, with implications for a wide range of ecosystem processes. As part of the Hemlock Removal Experiment at the Simes Tract, we annually monitor ant species composition and abundance.
Moths, Ants and Pitcher Plants in Bogs at Harvard Forest and Belchertown MA 2007-2013
Ecologists have long recognized that coexistence of interacting species depends on a diversity of separate, but linked habitats. Most models of species coexistence treat these habitat "patches" as unchanging elements of the landscape, but in reality, they are constantly changing in size and shape. The structure and dynamics of the food webs that inhabit them both control and depend on these changes. In this five-year (2006-2011) collaborative project, we are using a combination of extensive field surveys and intensive field experiments to understand how species interactions change the spatial distribution of dynamic habitat patches across the landscape, and to determine how food webs are structured within and among these patches. The experimental system for this five-year research project is the Sarracenia "microecosystem": the northern pitcher-plant Sarracenia purpurea; the unique food web of bacteria, protozoa, rotifers, mites, and fly larvae that live within its rainwater-filled leaves; three species of bog-inhabiting ants that are the primary prey for this carnivorous plant; and larvae of the pitcher-plant moth, Exyra fax, which cut and drain pitchers and remove food web habitat. Results from surveys of bogs in all six New England state and field experiments conducted at bogs at Harvard Forest and Belchertown, Massachusetts will be used to parameterize a simulation model to predict changes in spatial structure of ant, moth, and plant populations, and the structure and composition of the aquatic food web associated with the plant. This work is funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, through collaborative awards 0541680 and 0541936.
Ant Functional Diversity in Temperate Zone Forests: A Comparison with Neotropical Ants 2010
Predicted impacts of climatic change on ant functional diversity and distributions in eastern North American forests Aims--Climatic change is expected to rearrange species assemblages and ultimately affect organism-mediated ecosystem processes. We focus on identifying patterns and relationships between common ant species (representing 99% of total ant records) richness and functional diversity; modelling how these patterns may change at local and regional scales in future climatic conditions; and interpreting how these changes might influence ant-mediated ecosystem processes. Location--Forested ecosystems of eastern North America. Methods--We used a previously published dataset to evaluate functional diversity at 67 sites in the eastern U.S. and quantified 14 taxonomic, morphometric and natural history traits for 70 common ant species in the region. We used functional diversity metrics, functional groups and species distribution modelling methods to address our aims. We used stacked species distribution models and stacked functional group models to predict species assemblages and functional richness at the 67 sites and at a regional scale for current and future climatic conditions. Results--Species richness and functional diversity are positively correlated throughout the region. Under future climate scenarios, species richness and functional group richness were predicted to decrease in southern ecoregions and increase in northern ecoregions. This may be due to increased thermal stress for species in the southern extent of their ranges and increased habitat suitability in the northern ecoregions. Decomposers, arthropod community regulators and seed dispersers are forecast to be the most threatened ant functional groups. Main Conclusions--Climate change will likely lead to major changes in ant species richness and functional group richness in the forests of the north-eastern United States, and this may substantially alter ant-mediated ecosystem processes and services
Ants in the New York Pine Barrens 2012-2013
Ants are ecologically important, environmentally sensitive, widespread, and abundant, yet ant assemblages of many habitats remain poorly understood. This is true of inland pine barrens in the northeastern United States. In the Northeast, such barrens support uncommon ant species and high species density for the region. Ants in inland barrens of New York State barely have been studied. To increase knowledge of these assemblages, I systematically collected ants from three NY inland barrens and investigated how hiking trails--a common man-made disturbance--may be impacting ant assemblages in these early-successional, disturbance-dependent ecosystems. My data strongly indicate uncommonly high densities of ant species in NY pine barrens, including the most northern known occurrences of two species, and show that hiking trails alter ant assemblage composition and species density.
Structure of Ant Communities in Declining Hemlock Stands at Harvard Forest 2003
In biomass and ecological dominance, ants are the most important invertebrate taxon in terrestrial ecosystems and they can alter significantly fundamental processes and dynamics of soil ecosystems. Relative to deciduous stands, hemlock stands are depauperate in ant species that are linked to differences in rates of soil turnover and nutrient mineralization between these forest types. In both hemlock and deciduous stands, we will document ant species richness and abundance; assess their role in soil nutrient cycling; determine temporal trajectories of ant community assembly as hemlock declines following woolly adelgid infestation, and is subsequently replaced by birch; and discover how these trajectories influence nutrient availability during this transition. For more details see: Ellison, A. M., J. Chen, D. Dz, C. Kammerer-Burnham, and M. Lau. 2005. Changes in ant community structure and composition associated with hemlock decline in New England. Pages 280-289 in B. Onken and R. Reardon, editors. Proceedings of the 3rd Symposium on Hemlock Woolly Adelgid in the Eastern United States. US Department of Agriculgure - US Forest Service - Forest Health Technology Enterprise Team, Morgantown, West Virginia.
Density and cover of winter annual plants in three harvester ant habitats at the Jornada Basin LTER site, 1987
This dataset contains plant cover and density data collected in three harvester ant (Pogonomyrmex rugosus) nesting habitats at the Jornada Basin LTER site in 1987. The purpose of this investigation was to answer three general questions: 1. How does the modification of soil properties and the ratios of resources (e.g., water-N) by ants alter species assemblages of winter annual plants at the edge of the ant nests? 2. How does the "spring cleaning", clipping, predation or herbivory by ants affect success of the winter annual plants at the edge of ant nests? 3. Are there significant differences in the floristic assemblage and belowground standing crop (root biomass) between the edge of ant nest and the surrounding unaffected soils? Variables included in the dataset include density and cover of all winter annual plants measured at regular intervals between January and May of 1987. Density is expressed as the number of individuals of a species per square meter. The cover of each species was calculated as the area covered by a perpendicular (not vertical) projection of its aerial parts onto the ground surface and expressed in covered area (cm squared) per square meter. This study was completed in 1987.
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Allen Brain Atlas
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