BEHAVIORAL ECOLOGY AT THE ANT-PLANT-HERBIVORE INTERFACE: INTERACTIONS BETWEEN ANTS AND LEPIDOPTERANS.

Abstract

Ants are one of the most prominent groups of terrestrial organisms in terms of diversity, relative abundance, and biomass. Their importance is due primarily to eusociality  combined with complex communication systems, which enable them to recruit nestmates to capture prey and/or protect profitable resources. Tropical foliage is rich in renewable food sources that promote visitation by ants. Because they are the principle predators among foliage, ants can strongly affect the communities of herbivorous insects and promote trophic cascades with relevant consequences to plants. The presence of ants on foliage can affect herbivores in two ways: (1) ant foragers can decrease the number of herbivores on plants through antagonistic interactions (e.g. aggressiveness, predation), (2) ants can create an enemy-free space for myrmecophilous herbivores (i.e. those living in close association with ants). Here, we discuss the ecological scenario in which these interactions occur, and examine the effects of foliage-dwelling ants on the biology and behavior of lepidopteran larvae.