FOR201H1 Study Guide - Midterm Guide: Seed Predation, Eusociality, Arthropod
Document Summary
Lecture5: major insect groups in the tropicsl. Beetles(coleoptera) 40: ecological roles: herbivores, seed predators, fungivores, pollinators + some predators. Ants, bees and wasps 14: ants. Colonial, wingless workers, kneed antennae, constricted abdomen. Leaf cutter ants(atta): (a) cut leaves as food for cultivated fungi, (b) very common, can have huge impact on forest, (c) giant nests! Driver ants: (a) the army ants of legend, (b) enormous colonies(~22 million), with roving bivouac nest (c) very aggressive predators with large soldier caste(highly polymorphic) (d) generalists. New world army ants (a) neotropical, similar to driver ants in africa (b) diverse group of bird followes : the entire family of antbird. Very important as decomposers (a) can digest wood using specialized symbiosis (b) some species attack live trees (c) have diverse commensal species that utilize termite mound! Important in tropical food webs: ants vs. termites. Ants have thin waists and elbow antennae. Termites have thick waists and straight antennae: bees and wasps.
