Effect of nests of leaf cutter ant Atta vollenweideri on soil physical properties in a native forest
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25260/EA.16.26.3.0.303Abstract
Leafcutter ants (LCA) are widely being “ecosystem engineers” due to changes in the soil caused by the construction of their nests. We determined the spatial variation of mechanical resistance to penetration (MRP) of a modified soil Alfisol with LCA in a native forest to Mesopotamian Espinal. The study was conducted in the Natural Protected Area “Estancia El Carayá” (Entre Ríos, Argentina). 10 nests A. vollenweideri where MRP was recorded in five positions (center of the nest, the nest periphery, 15, 30 and 60 m from the nest) by two transects each nest 60 m were selected with random direction. Then an interpolation of each penetration was performed in a longitudinal profile isovalues MRP, using the method of inverse distance weighting. The MRP increased ~30% at 40 cm soil depth over the center of the nest about its periphery. On the other hand, the MRP increased significantly only in the first 10 cm deep in the center of the nest. Nests to A. vollenweideri modify the physical properties of soils, substrates that can be potentially used by other organizations, illustrating their role as ecosystemic engineers.References
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