Abstract
Soil and changes in vegetation may affect ant assemblages, but the relative importance of each in different habitats is not well characterized. In particular, information on the effects of ecological restoration on arthropods is scarce. It was decided, therefore, to study how reforestation may affect an ant assemblage. Ants were sampled in area that had been reforested and adjacent grassland using pitfall traps. Soil surface and vegetation were characterized. The disturbance of the vegetation caused by reforestation resulted in a decrease in the cover of Stipa tenacissima and Cistaceae and an increase in the cover of pine. The mechanical preparation of the site also resulted in changes in the soil surface, with an increase in the cover of stones and rocks. Ant species richness and abundance were greater at the reforested site than in the grassland and more species showed a positive than a negative response to reforestation. The underlying causes of this pattern are mainly related to changes in vegetation and structure of the soil surface and are associated with the increase in the cover of pine, which most probably provided additional food resources, and the greater cover of stones and rocks that provided more shelter for the ant assemblage.
Highlights
Grasslands dominated by esparto grass Stipa tenacissima L. with a sparse cover of vegetation, are one of the commonest ecosystems in semiarid regions in the Western Mediterranean basin (Barberá et al, 2006; Maestre et al, 2007; Cortina et al, 2009)
The effect of grazing on S. tenacissima is low because this grass has a low palatability, but these grasslands have been intensively managed for producing fibre used for making baskets, shoes, mats, etc, from prehistoric times until the 1950–1960s
We studied the effects of a 16-year old reforestation with P. halepensis of a semiarid S. tenacissima grassland on the local ant assemblage, looking at the effects of changes in the soil and vegetation
Summary
Grasslands dominated by esparto grass Stipa tenacissima L. with a sparse cover of vegetation, are one of the commonest ecosystems in semiarid regions in the Western Mediterranean basin (Barberá et al, 2006; Maestre et al, 2007; Cortina et al, 2009). The effect of grazing on S. tenacissima is low because this grass has a low palatability, but these grasslands have been intensively managed for producing fibre (esparto) used for making baskets, shoes, mats, etc, from prehistoric times until the 1950–1960s. This practice has been mostly abandoned, the abandonment has not resulted in any major changes in the habitat (Barberá et al, 2006; Maestre et al, 2007). Many authors consider esparto grass steppes to be degraded former oak or pine open forests or shrub land dominated by, e.g., Pistacia lentiscus L. (Costa, 1973; Valdés & Herranz, 1989; Maestre et al, 2007)
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