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Do ants feed plants? A 15 N labelling study of nitrogen fluxes from ants to plants in the mutualism of Pheidole and Piper
Author(s) -
Fischer Renate C.,
Wanek Wolfgang,
Richter Andreas,
Mayer Veronika
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
journal of ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.452
H-Index - 181
eISSN - 1365-2745
pISSN - 0022-0477
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-2745.2003.00747.x
Subject(s) - pheidole , mutualism (biology) , biology , botany , nutrient , nectar , myrmecophyte , ant , myrmicinae , ecology , ant colony , honeydew , hymenoptera , pollen , algorithm , ant colony optimization algorithms , computer science
Summary1 Nutrient fluxes play a significant role in the interaction of myrmecophytic plants and their symbiotic ants. There is a clear flux from plants to ants via nectar or food bodies but nutrient fluxes from ants to plants are less obvious. 2 We report on a nitrogen flux from ants to plants in the association between Pheidole bicornis (Formicidae‐Myrmicinae) and two myrmecophytic Piper species ( P. fimbriulatum and P. obliquum , Piperaceae). Pulse experiments were performed by feeding ants with 15 N‐labelled glycine supplied in sucrose solution. Workers passed ingested label on to other ants and the brood by trophallaxis. 3 The distribution of label within the colony showed highest incorporation rates in larvae and in the working caste, while the reproductive caste received only a small amount of the 15 N‐labelled food. 4 Nutrient transfer from ants to plants occurred remarkably fast. Within 6 days, up to 25% of the nitrogen ingested by the ants was incorporated by the plants. 5 However, ant distribution within P. fimbriulatum plants did not correlate with the intra‐plant uptake pattern of 15 N, and ant‐mediated nitrogen uptake by myrmecophytic P. fimbriulatum accounted for less than 1% of the plants’ above‐ground nitrogen demand.