Diversity and community structure of arthropods in tropical rainforest canopies.

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Forest canopies, the top layers consisting of foliage and twigs, are core sites for the photosyntheses and reproductions of trees that form the forests. Hence, various animals that use the trees are expected to inhabit forest canopies. However, since the canopies mainly develop at the height of > 40 meters above the ground in tropical rainforests, it has been very hard to investigate the animals there. In this research project, we explored the species composition, and their within-tree microhabitats, food menu, enemies, competitors and mutualistic partners, of the arthropods, which have been considered to be most diversified taxa in tropical rainforests, in the canopy of a tropical rainforest by using the architecture for observation in the canopy. Our results suggested that, in tropical rainforests, there are many undescribed arthropod species that are specialized to the microenvironments in the canopy, aand that ants affect various traits of the community of arthropods in the canopy.