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Tropical ant community responses to experimental soil warming
Jelena Bujan1,2, Andrew T Nottingham3,4, Esther Velasquez4
1Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
Biology Letters
|April 6, 2022
Summary
Climate change impacts insect populations. Soil warming experiments reveal that increased temperatures favor certain ant species, potentially those with invasive traits and moderate heat tolerance.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Climate Change Biology
- Entomology
Background:
- Climate change is a major driver of global insect decline.
- Tropical ectotherms are particularly vulnerable to rising temperatures due to narrow thermal ranges.
- Previous studies are often confounded by other anthropogenic disturbances, necessitating direct experimental approaches.
Purpose of the Study:
- To directly assess the impact of experimental soil warming on litter-dwelling ant communities in a tropical forest.
- To investigate the relationship between temperature, heat tolerance, and ant foraging activity and colony fitness.
Main Methods:
- A two-year tropical forest soil warming experiment was conducted.
- Ant communities in warmed and control plots were monitored.
- Ant recruitment at baits was measured and correlated with soil surface temperature and ant heat tolerance.
Main Results:
- Warming significantly altered ant community composition, with some genera appearing only in warmed plots and one only in control plots.
- The native but often invasive ant species, *Wasmannia auropunctata*, showed increased abundance in warmed plots.
- Soil surface temperature and ant heat tolerance were the best predictors of ant recruitment at baits.
Conclusions:
- Experimental warming (2-4°C over two years) profoundly affects abundant insect populations in tropical forests.
- Heat tolerance is a key factor in predicting changes in daily foraging activity and colony fitness.
- Increased temperatures may favor insect species with invasive traits and moderate heat tolerances, altering community dynamics.
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