Abstract
Predators affect plant fitness when they forage on them and reduce the action of herbivores. Our study evaluates the complementary effects of spiders and ants that visit the extrafloral nectaries of Eriotheca gracilipes (Malvaceae) on the production of fruits and viable seeds of these savanna trees. Four experimental groups were established: control group – with free access of spiders and ants; exclusion group – spiders and ants excluded; ant group – absence of spiders; and spider group – absence of ants. The presence of ants reduced the spider richness; however, the presence of spiders did not affect the ant richness. A significantly higher number of fruits per buds were found in the presence of spiders alone or spiders and ants together (control group) compared with the absence of both predators (exclusion group). The number of seeds per fruits and seed viability were higher in the control group. This is the first study showing that spiders and ants may exert a positive and complementary effect on the reproductive value of an extrafloral nectaried plant. Mostly the impact of ants and/or spiders on herbivores is considered, whereas our study reinforces the importance of evaluating the effect of multiple predators simultaneously, exploring how the interactions among predators with distinct skills may affect the herbivores and the plants on which they forage.
Highlights
Multitrophic interactions comprise a minimum of three trophic levels that interact among each other: plants, herbivores and their natural enemies [1, 2]
We addressed four main questions: (a) Is the species richness of spiders or ants affected by the co-occurrence of these predators on host plants? (b) What are the main guilds of spiders and ants species that occur on these extrafloral nectaried plants? (c) Do ants and/or spiders exert a positive impact on plant reproduction? (d) Are the outcomes of these predator-plant relationships dependent on the co-occurrence of ants and spiders in the same host plants, or it does not matter?
A total of 17 morphospecies of spiders was found in the E. gracilipes plants
Summary
Multitrophic interactions comprise a minimum of three trophic levels that interact among each other: plants, herbivores and their natural enemies [1, 2]. The topdown forces exerted by invertebrate predators on herbivores and their cascading effect on plants are very important for the structuring of terrestrial communities [3, 4, 5]. Ants exert a strong impact on the density and spatial distribution of leaf. Emergent Impacts of Ants and Spiders on Plant Success and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript
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