Trophic Ecology of Ant Invasions as Revealed Through Stable Isotope Analysis.

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Invasive species are now thought to be an important component of global change. Examining the impacts and mechanisms of their success has therefore become of paramount importance. One of the most damaging and costly invasive species in agricultural, urban, and natural environments is the Argentine ant. Despite numerous studies on its biology and ecological impacts, very little is known about the dietaryinputs of this species because direct measures of the ant's diet are very difficult to undertake. This information is essential for both understanding how Argentine ants affect the communities they invade as well as developing biologically based control strategies for invasive ants. The research in this proposal will examine the dietary inputs of Argentine ants and the ecology of systems they invade using naturally occurring stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen. Stable isotope analysis traces the flow of nutrients through communities and permits an estimate of the dietary inputs of animals. In our initial objective, for we have received funding, we will conduct experiments to develop baseline readings of isotopic values for Argentine ants in simple food webs. These data will help us interpret results of subsequent field research.