Sat, 26 Jul 2008 04:38:44 BST CiteULike: Tag formicidae http://www.citeulike.org/tag/formicidae CiteULike.org en-gb Copyright © 2004-2008 citeulike.org http://www.citeulike.org/user/rdmpage/article/822938 <i>pp. 93-102.</i><br /><br />The influence of defoliation by leaf-cutting ants (Atta mexicana) on the dispersion patterns of xerophytic shrubs in the semi-arid valley of Zapotitlán, Mexico was analysed. All shrubs and ant nest entrances were mapped in a 65×50 m stand, and the vigour of each individual shrub was estimated. A regression analysis between the distance to the nearest nest and the vigour of plants showed a significant relationship for Acacia constricta, Castela tortuosa,Echinopteryx eglandulosa and Mimosa luisana, revealing higher vigour as distance to the nest entrances increases. A point pattern analysis showed a clear clumped pattern for the latter three species, plus Prosopis laevigata; whereasAcacia constricta and Cercidium praecox, as well as the ant nest entrances, did not show any pattern significantly different from chance. A bivariate point pattern analysis did not show the expected repulsion pattern among shrubs and nest entrances. According to an auto-correlation analysis, individuals of Mimosa luisana forming dense clusters away from the ant nests entrances showed higher vigour values than those plants with higher inter-individual distances closer to the nests entrances. Although the unveiling of the ecological implications of ant–shrub and shrub–shrub interactions demands a detailed experimental approach, our results reveal the importance of herbivory in the structuring of natural communities.Copyright 2000 Academic Press Influence of leaf-cutting ants (Atta mexicana) on performance and dispersion patterns of perennial desert shrubs in an inter-tropical region of Central Mexico Zavala-Hurtado J.A. pp. 93-102. 2006-08-31T12:15:30-00:00 93 102 atta formicidae mexicana http://www.citeulike.org/user/ants_cachoeira/article/851367 <i>Mol Phylogenet Evol, Vol. 33, No. 2. (November 2004), pp. 457-468.</i><br /><br />Ants are one of the most ecologically and numerically dominant families of organisms in almost every terrestrial habitat throughout the world, though they include only about 1% of all described insect species. The development of eusociality is thought to have been a driving force in the striking diversification and dominance of this group, yet we know little about the evolution of the major lineages of ants and have been unable to clearly determine their primitive characteristics. Ants within the subfamily Amblyoponinae are specialized arthropod predators, possess many anatomically and behaviorally primitive characters and have been proposed as a possible basal lineage within the ants. We investigate the phylogenetic relationships among the members of the subfamily, using nuclear 28S rDNA sequence data. Outgroups for the analysis include members of the poneromorph and leptanillomorph (Apomyrma, Leptanilla) ant subfamilies, as well as three wasp families. Parsimony, maximum likelihood, and Bayesian analyses provide strong support for the monophyly of a clade containing the two genera Apomyrma+Mystrium (100% bpp; 97% ML bs; and 97% MP bs), and moderate support for the monophyly of the Amblyoponinae as long as Apomyrma (Apomyrminae) is included (87% bpp; 57% ML bs; and 76% MP bs). Analyses did not recover evidence of monophyly of the Amblyopone genus, while the monophyly of the other genera in the subfamily is supported. Based on these results we provide a morphological diagnosis of the Amblyoponinae that includes Apomyrma. Among the outgroup taxa, Typhlomyrmex grouped consistently with Ectatomma, supporting the recent placement of Typhlomyrmex in the Ectatomminae. The results of this present study place the included ant subfamilies into roughly two clades with the basal placement of Leptanilla unclear. One clade contains all the Amblyoponinae (including Apomyrma), Ponerinae, and Proceratiinae (Poneroid clade). The other clade contains members from subfamilies Cerapachyinae, Dolichoderinae, Ectatomminae, Formicinae, Myrmeciinae, and Myrmicinae (Formicoid clade). Dracula ant phylogeny as inferred by nuclear 28S rDNA sequences and implications for ant systematics (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Amblyoponinae). C Saux BL Fisher GS Spicer doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2004.06.017 Mol Phylogenet Evol, Vol. 33, No. 2. (November 2004), pp. 457-468. 2006-09-20T16:43:56-00:00 2004 Mol Phylogenet Evol 1055-7903 33 2 457 468 amblyopone amblyoponinae ants formicidae hymenoptera http://www.citeulike.org/user/ants/article/838953 <i>Ecological Entomology, Vol. 31, No. 5. (October 2006), pp. 491-498.</i> Microclimatic factors associated with elevational changes in army ant density in tropical montane forest Sean Odonnell Anjali Kumar doi:10.1111/j.1365-2311.2006.00805.x Ecological Entomology, Vol. 31, No. 5. (October 2006), pp. 491-498. 2006-09-11T16:27:22-00:00 2006 Ecological Entomology 0307-6946 31 5 491 498 Blackwell Publishing ants formicidae http://www.citeulike.org/user/ants/article/838963 <i>Ecological Entomology, Vol. 31, No. 5. (October 2006), pp. 403-410.</i> Limitation of nesting resources for ants in Colombian forests and coffee plantations Inge Armbrecht Ivette Perfecto Emily Silverman doi:10.1111/j.1365-2311.2006.00802.x Ecological Entomology, Vol. 31, No. 5. (October 2006), pp. 403-410. 2006-09-11T16:27:23-00:00 2006 Ecological Entomology 0307-6946 31 5 403 410 Blackwell Publishing ants formicidae neotropical