0000000000405343
AUTHOR
István Maák
Interspecific attraction between ground-nesting songbirds and ants: the role of nest-site selection
Abstract Background Interspecific interactions within ecological networks can influence animal fitness and behaviour, including nest-site selection of birds and ants. Previous studies revealed that nesting birds and ants may benefit from cohabitation, with interspecific attraction through their nest-site choice, but mutual interactions have not yet been tested. We explored a previously undescribed ecological link between ground-nesting birds and ants raising their own broods (larvae and pupae) within the birds’ nests in a temperate primeval forest of lowland Europe. We tested whether the occurrence of ant broods within bird nests resulted from a mutual or one-sided interspecific attraction …
Differential impact of two dominant Formica ant species (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) on subordinates in temperate Europe
Competition is one of the basic mechanisms shaping ant assemblages. Dominant territorial species are known to restrictively influence the traits of subordinates in various ways. However, there could be differences in the effects of dominants due to differences in their colony structure, lifestyle and also behaviour. We tested this hypothesis in natural circumstances in an area where a Formica exsecta Nyl. supercolony neighbours a strong population of the European slave-maker F. sanguinea Latr. For the purpose of our study three different sites were selected: one dominated by F. exsecta, a neighbouring site dominated by F. sanguinea, and a third site where both species co-occurred. We analyz…
Additional file 1 of Interspecific attraction between ground-nesting songbirds and ants: the role of nest-site selection
Additional file 1: Table S1. The number of ant colonies on sample plots (3 × 3 m) that were centred on Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix nests and controls in 2018-2020. Shown are the total number of sample plots on which ant colonies were searched for, and the percentage of sample plots on which a minimum of one ant colony was found. An ant colony was defined as a group of ants (workers and/or a queen with larvae or pupae) occupying a nest structure other than bird nest. Table S2. The mean daily ambient temperature (5-day average) and daily sum of rainfall (5-day sum) preceding Wood Warbler nest failure or chicks’ fledging, and the delay of bird nest collection from the field in 2018-20…