Greenhouse gas emissions from ant nests: A systematic review

Abstract

Abstract Ant nests are ecologically important emission sources of CO2, CH4, and N2O. An updated review of the progress in studying greenhouse gas (GHG) flux from ant nests could provide a more comprehensive understanding of their role in this context. We evaluate the progress in assessing GHG flux assessment through a systematic review and identify factors responsible for higher GHG emissions from ant nests. The specific goals were to conduct a bibliographic analysis of the frequency and geographical distribution of scientific works addressing this topic, reported species, and methodologies; to relate the mean GHG flux to species‐specific characteristics of ant nests; and to identify patterns and biases responsible for reported higher GHG levels. More data is needed on the species and habitats studied. The most frequently examined gas was CO2, and the closed chamber system was the most used method, with a wide variation in chamber size and material. No relation was found between CO2 emissions and species‐specific characteristics, which can be explained by the fact that these data show a high variability, probably due to the abiotic factors in each study, different measurement methods, and their respective configurations. Our study underlines the need to standardise GHG measurement methods to allow for reliable comparisons between ant species and habitats. Furthermore, it signals the need to investigate more information to build appropriate global GHG emissions models. This progress will only be possible through collaborative studies by increasing interaction among researchers through projects on a continental or global scale.