Elliott Chaparral Reserve

31 Mar, 04 PM - 30 Nov, 04 PM

A primary goal of invasion biology lies in predicting community-level susceptibility to invasion. The physical environment can greatly influence where invasions do and do not succeed because species introduced into habitats different from their native range often have dissimilar ecologies and environmental tolerances compared to native species. Argentine ants (Linepithema humile) are native to flood-prone riparian areas in South America and have now been introduced worldwide. Introduced Argentine ants form supercolonies in which individuals from different nests do not display intraspecific aggression. This allows L. humile to reach high densities and to eliminate all native ants in its introduced range. Because Argentine ants do not replace the diversity of ecological roles filled by those native ants, threatening the long-term survival of southern California?s incredibly rich native flora and fauna. In California Argentine ants occur commonly in riparian and urban areas but not in dry native habitats suggesting that two abiotic factors, soil moisture and temperature, may be limiting their spread. Two possible mechanisms may explain the role of abiotic factors: (1) Argentine ants are physiologically limited to moist environments, and (2) native ants competitively dominate Argentine ants in hot, dry habitats. I propose a set of controlled, replicated experiments to investigate the role of abiotic factors in invasion success. First, I will test the hypothesis that artificially increasing soil moisture by drip irrigation allows L. humile to invade new areas temporarily.

Visit #5107 @Elliott Chaparral Reserve

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Under Project # 4061 | Research

Role of abiotic factors in determining invasion success of Argentine ants (Linepithema humile)

graduate_student - University of California, San Diego

Reservation Members(s)

Sean Menke Mar 31 - Nov 30, 2004 (245 days)
Group of 3 Research Assistant (non-student/faculty/postdoc) Mar 31 - Nov 30, 2004 (245 days)
Sean Menke Mar 31 - Nov 30, 2004 (245 days)

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Grounds use only 5 Mar 31 - Nov 30, 2004