Abstract
Cicadas are usually studied regarding their importance in agriculture. However, the possibility of this group to represent a pulse of nutrients can also imply on the success of a given species in the biome. The aim of this study was to assess the level of total soluble proteins and lipids of Fidicina mannifera (Fabricius, 1803), and to determine whether the species can promote a pulse of nutrients in two vegetation classes of the Brazilian Cerrado. To assess the pulse of nutrients, it was concluded the determination of total soluble proteins and lipids from samples of males and adult females of F. mannifera, and the spatial distribution of exuviae of this species was also calculated in two vegetation classes of the Brazilian Cerrado. The amount of protein provided by each individual did not differ between males and females (p = 0.66) but females had 40% more lipids than males (p = 0.05). Regarding F. mannifera the gallery forest offered 11.75 g/ha of protein, 3.91 g/ha of lipids, and the Cerrado stricto sensu offered 4.25 g/ha of protein, and 1.41 g/ha of lipid. The male cicadas have a hollow abdomen, which houses a resonance chamber for sound production in order to attract females to mate, and females store larger amounts of lipids, mainly located in the abdominal cavity, where the body fat is directly linked to the reproductive system for the development of the ovaries and egg production after emergence. The mass occurrence of F. mannifera in the Brazilian Cerrado and the fast availability of proteins and lipids make this species a food resource that can directly impact the diet of secondary consumers and scavengers, although the amount of nutrients available by F. mannifera does not promote a pulse of nutrients in the study site.
Highlights
In biological communities the environmental processes, such as the flow of nutrients in the ecosystem, are diverse and critical to maintain the ecological balance
The amount of protein provided by each individual did not differ between males and females (t = -0.4546, p = 0.66), but the F. mannifera females showed 40% more mass than males in lipids (w = 1, p = 0.05)
The available proteins and lipids offered by males and females increased in samples collected on November and December 2013 (Figures 1 and 2)
Summary
In biological communities the environmental processes, such as the flow of nutrients in the ecosystem, are diverse and critical to maintain the ecological balance. According to Yang et al (2008), the resource pulses are defined as infrequent phenomena, characterized by their large magnitude, short time for occurrence and the addition of nutrients to the ecosystem. Efforts related to resource pulses have increased in the last decade (Peek and Forseth, 2003; Yang, 2005; Nowlin et al, 2008; Yang et al, 2008), which contributed to a better understanding of natural environments for two reasons: first, because the natural systems are influenced by some component of the pulse, and second, because these pulses provide opportunities to investigate many ecological interactions (Ostfeld and Keesing, 2000; Small et al, 2013; Yang, 2013). The emergence of cicadas is the phenomenon in which the nymphs leave the subsoil to the surface and come to accomplish metamorphosis and later reproduction (Young, 1975; Yang et al, 2008)
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