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Application of CO 2 carbon stable isotope analysis to ant trophic ecology
Author(s) -
Balzani Paride,
Venturi Stefania,
Muzzicato Daniela,
Tassi Franco,
Vaselli Orlando,
Frizzi Filippo,
Frasconi Wendt Clara,
Nisi Barbara,
Masoni Alberto,
Santini Giacomo
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
entomologia experimentalis et applicata
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.765
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1570-7458
pISSN - 0013-8703
DOI - 10.1111/eea.12983
Subject(s) - biology , trophic level , isotope analysis , hymenoptera , ant , ecology , generalist and specialist species , aculeata , isotopes of carbon , botany , habitat , total organic carbon
Stable isotope analysis of animal tissues is commonly used to infer diet and trophic position. However, it requires destructive sampling. The analysis of carbon isotopes from exhaled CO 2 is non‐invasive and can provide useful ecological information because isotopic CO 2 signatures can reflect the diet and metabolism of an animal. However, this methodology has rarely been used on invertebrates and never on social insects. Here, we first tested whether this method reflects differences in δ 13 C‐CO 2 between workers of the Mediterranean ant Crematogaster scutellaris (Olivier) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae, Crematogastrini) fed with sugar from beet (C3; Beta vulgaris L., Amaranthaceae) or cane (C4; Saccharum officinarum L., Poaceae). We found that a significant difference can be obtained after 24 h. Consequently, we used this technique on wild co‐occurring ant species with different feeding preferences to assess their reliance on C3 or C4 sources. For this purpose, we sampled workers of C. scutellaris , the invasive garden ant Lasius neglectus (van Loon et al.) (Lasiini), and the harvester ant Messor capitatus (Latreille) (Stenammini). No significant differences in their carbon isotopic signatures were recorded, suggesting that in our study site no niche partitioning occurs based on the carbon pathway, with all species sharing similar resources. However, further analysis revealed that M. capitatus , a seed‐eating ant, can be regarded as a C3 specialist, whereas L. neglectus and C. scutellaris are generalists that rely on both C3 and C4 pathways, though with a preference for the former. Our results show that this methodology can be applied even to small animals such as ants and can provide useful information on the diets of generalist omnivores.