Biology subjects

Trigos-Peral, G.

Publications and source records attributed to Trigos-Peral, G..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Urban Lasius niger ants more readily accept low concentration sucrose solution than rural ants

Urbanisation causes broad changes in biotic and abiotic factors, which are often detrimental to animals. While extensive attention has been focussed on food resources for pollinators, comparatively little research has examined resources for aphidophagous insects. Many ants, such as Lasius niger, are highly aphidophagous, relying on honeydew secretions for the majority of their carbohydrate intake. Ants will also often reject sugar solution which is of lower concentration than that they were expecting. Here, we ask whether Lasius niger ants from urban environments show differential acceptance to various sucrose solution molarities. We offered outgoing ants on active foraging trails drops of sucrose solutions over a range of molarities (0.125, 0.25, 0.5, 1, and 2M), and quantified acceptance. Acceptance was scored using a simple behavioural measure of whether the ant remained in contact with the sucrose drop for over 3 seconds (full acceptance), broke away from the drop within 3 seconds but remained in the area and eventually drank to satiation (partial acceptance), or did not drink to satiation and walked away (rejection). Urban ants showed a significantly higher acceptance of all sucrose molarities than rural ants, with this difference especially pronounced at lower molarities. This may indicate that they are under nutritional stress for carbohydrates. Ant responses to sucrose solutions may allow a straightforward measure of the availability of carbohydrate resources in the environment.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2025

Impact of Biogenic Structures of the Soil-Nesting Ants Lasius niger and Lasius flavus on the Soil Microarthropod Community in Urban Green Spaces

Organisms that physically modify their environment, known as ecosystem engineers, can influence resource availability, species interactions and the structure of soil communities. However, the specific effect of ecosystem engineers like ants on the abundance and diversity of non-engineering soil organisms remains understudied. To address this knowledge gap, we conducted a survey of a multi-taxon belowground community of soil microarthropods - Collembola, Mesostigmata, Oribatida and Actinedida - in urban areas, comparing nest mounds of the ant species Lasius niger (Linnaeus, 1758) and Lasius flavus (Fabricius, 1782) with areas without ant-nesting activity (control). We hypothesised differences in abundance and distribution patterns of different soil microarthropod taxa between ant mounds and the control soil. We also hypothesised that ant-induced soil disturbance is species specific, and may result in different patterns of diversity and composition of soil microarthropod assemblages within trophic levels, such as among detritivores (e.g. Collembola) and predators (e.g. Mesostigmata, which are mainly free-living predatory species in soil litter habitats). Our results reveal how ecological filters shape different soil microarthropod groups responses to ant-driven changes in their environment. As we expected, soil disturbance caused by ant nest-building activity significantly influenced the abundance, distribution patterns and diversity of these soil microarthropods.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2024

Biotic challenges in the city: Dietary restrictions and body fat content of female sexuals in urban ant populations

Urban habitats represent an important challenge for many organisms. Besides the abiotic changes, urban habitats are also characterized by changes in the biotic conditions, such as a more uniform species composition and declining population sizes. For urban ants this can result in dietary shortages. In our study, we tested whether urban ant colonies might suffer from dietary restrictions by carrying out a common garden experiment in which ant colonies from urban and rural habitats were exposed to high carbohydrate, protein, and fat / protein diets. We also investigated the body fat content of individuals from both habitat types. Our findings suggest a lower availability of high-quality carbohydrates in urban areas. Additionally, while not statistically significant, rural colonies exhibited a tendency to consume greater quantities of proteins and fat compared to urban colonies. This trend was in line with a higher body fat content observed in female sexuals (gynes) from rural colonies. These results might indicate the outcome of an evolutionary feedback process in which ant colonies adapt to nutritional constraints in urban environments. They achieve this by minimizing the investment in gynes, which might require fewer reserves for survival during colony foundation due to reduced competition for nesting sites within urban green spaces.

ecology↗