Diversity and ecology of arboricolous ant communities of Camponotus ( Hymenoptera : Formicidae ) in a New Guinea rainforest with descriptions of four new species
Diversity and ecology of arboricolous ant communities of Camponotus ( Hymenoptera : Formicidae ) in a New Guinea rainforest with descriptions of four new species
复制标题
新几内亚雨林弓背蚁（膜翅目：蚁科）树形蚂蚁群落的多样性和生态学以及四个新物种的描述
DOI：
--
复制
发表时间：
2014
期刊：
影响因子：
--
通讯作者：
Philip A. Bell
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
N. Thomas;Philip A. Bell
新几内亚是最后剩下的大面积热带森林地区之一，是一个重要的生物多样性热点，但其大部分冠层蚂蚁物种鲜为人知。在这里，我们首次对新几内亚低地热带雨林中的Camponotus Mayr属的树栖蚂蚁群落进行了研究。调查了原始林(389株)和次生林(296株)两块0.32hm2林地中的弯曲线虫巢，探讨了它们的物种多样性和筑巢偏好。共发现19种293个巢。在19个物种中的16个物种中，主要工蚁表现出一组与树巢适应的隔膜相关的形态特征(即头部前部扁平，股前肿胀，额隆突之间的最大距离大于头部宽度的三分之一)。在原生林中，我们在124个巢中发现了15种，而在次生林中，169个巢中只发现了8种。这两块林地共有的物种只有四种。在两个森林样地中，弯曲线虫在筑巢微生境的偏好上有很大的不同，从机会主义的和相对丰富的物种，到专门的和只在树冠高处活的树枝上筑巢的物种，在那里它们照顾着桃金娘介壳虫。在采集到的19种植物中，有13种为新几内亚新记录种，其中4种为新种：Camponotus anezkae sp.n.、Camponotus rotondus sp.n.、Camponotus triangulatus sp.n.和弯曲线虫Camponotus wanangus sp.n.此外，对Camponotus aruensis KARAVAIEV，1933进行了重新描述。提供了物种识别的诊断特征、所有可用种姓的数字照片和形态测量。这项研究表明，树栖弯曲蚁及其在单一热带森林地点的筑巢习性具有高度的多样性。
New Guinea is one of the last remaining regions of extensive tropical forest and is an important biodiversity hotspot, yet most of its canopy ant species are poorly known. Here, we provide the first study of arboricolous ant communities of the genus Camponotus MAYR, 1861 from a lowland rainforest in New Guinea. We censused Camponotus nests in trees from two 0.32 ha forest plots in primary forest (389 trees) and secondary forest (296 trees) and explored their species diversity and nesting preferences. In total, 293 nests of 19 species were found. In 16 of the 19 species, major workers exhibited a set of morphological traits (i.e., flattened anterior part of head, swollen fore femora and maximal distance between frontal carinae greater than a third of head width) associated with phragmosis, an adaptation for arboricolous nesting. In primary forest, we detected 15 species in 124 nests versus only eight species in 169 nests in secondary forest. Only four species were shared between the two forest plots. Camponotus species differed significantly in their preferences for nesting microhabitats in both forest plots, ranging from species that were opportunistic and relatively abundant to those that specialized and nested only in living tree branches high in the canopy where they tended myrmecophilous scale insects. Of the 19 species collected, 13 are newly reported for New Guinea, including four that are described here as new species: Camponotus anezkae sp.n., Camponotus rotundus sp.n., Camponotus triangulatus sp.n. and Camponotus wanangus sp.n. In addition, Camponotus aruensis KARAVAIEV, 1933 is redescribed. Diagnostic features for species identification, digital photos of all available castes and morphological measurements are provided. The study demonstrates the high diversity of arboricolous Camponotus ants and their nesting habits within a single tropical forest site.