Ant Fauna Research Articles

Functional traits mediate ant community assembly in a West African savannah-forest mosaic (Côte d'Ivoire)

African forest-savannah mosaics are complex landscapes holding mixtures of woody grasslands (savannah) and different forest systems (gallery forests and forest islands). In these landscapes, ants are highly diverse and perform essential ecosystem services, however, the assembly of ant communities in African forest-savannah mosaics is poorly understood. Here we showed the diversity and species overlap of ant communities in three habitats of the West African savannah and quantified the contribution of thermal tolerances and trophic ecology to community assembly. We investigated ant diversity in the West African Comoé National Park (Côte d'Ivoire) at 16 sites of three habitat types within a forest-savannah mosaic: continuous gallery forest, isolated forest islands and savannah. Across all sites, we collected a total of 91 species from 35 genera from three strata: trees, leaf litter, and soil. Additionally, we assessed differences in functional traits (trophic groups and thermal tolerance) between habitat types and strata. Though species richness was similar in all three habitats, there was a clear separation in species assemblages and functional traits between the two forest habitats and the savannah. Species assemblage shifts were primarily due to species turnover between savannah and forest habitats. In addition, the turnover in species assemblages from forests to savannah habitats was associated with a change in the thermal tolerance of species and in the proportion of trophobionts and predators. Forest and savannah habitats support distinct ant communities with different functional traits and contribute additively to the landscape-scale diversity of the West African ant fauna. Land-use and park management should focus on conserving both savannah and forest sites in tropical protected areas such as the Comoé National Park.

Taxonomic and functional diversity of foliage‐dwelling ants in conventional and organic agroecosystems in southern Brazil: A landscape perspective

Abstract In modern landscapes, understanding how land use and land cover, specifically agriculture, affect biodiversity and ecological functions is essential for conservation. According to Brazilian law, agroecosystems must include areas designated for biodiversity conservation called Legal Reserves. We evaluated the taxonomic and functional diversity of foliage‐dwelling ants in Legal Reserves of agroecosystems in the south of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. We aimed to understand how land use and land cover at different landscape scales affect the ant fauna. We sampled ant communities in organic and conventional agroecosystems using passive and active sampling methods (arboreal pitfall traps and active sample, respectively). For the analysis of functional diversity, we measured morphological attributes related to the ecological strategies of ants, such as perception of visual cues, foraging and resource acquisition. We characterized the landscape by visual interpretation of high‐resolution satellite imagery within a 100 m, 500 m and 1 km radius of the sampling areas. We did not identify any effects of cultivation systems on ant fauna. However, we found that landscape characteristics, such as the proportion of natural forest within 100 m, positively affected functional richness. Additionally, within 500 m, natural forest coverage, along with the proportion of cultivation, positively influenced ant incidence. We emphasize the function of Legal Reserves around farms, of serving as support to maintain the presence of ants and the diversity of ecological functions performed by these organisms. We also emphasize that new studies in the region should investigate how a higher homogenization of cultures and cultivation systems, including other phyto‐physiognomies, influence the myrmecofauna of these environments.

Filling gaps in global myrmecology: ants of the Kingdom of Bahrain (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

ABSTRACT We present the first faunal analysis of the ants (Formicidae) of the Kingdom of Bahrain (Bahrain), an island nation in the Arabian Gulf. We document a total of 35 ant species based on published, unpublished and new specimen records, including 26 presumed native species and nine non-native tramp species. The native fauna was predominantly of Palaearctic origin, with a few Afrotropical species. A new species of the genus Lepisiota Santschi, 1926, L. bahrainensis sp. n., is described and illustrated based on the worker caste. Habitat suitability modelling of the ant fauna of Bahrain was generated using a total of 157 recorded points against the panel of 19 bioclimatic factors. We used Maxent software to generate the final map which indicates a significantly high and excellent habitat suitability of species on the northern part of the country and high suitability on the eastern coasts. Our results show that the mean temperature of the driest season is the most effective parameter in modelling the distribution, and we present interpretations of the very low habitat suitability in the extremely arid desert in the southern regions of the main island. Finally, we present ecological and biological remarks and distribution maps for each species. http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:18D05DD2-4B64-4A87-8389-582D5714411C http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:DA93B16A-C23B-45F8-8C6A-867B8734D587

The diversity of ants in moderately isolated islands of Japan: towards understanding of factors affecting their colonisation success

ABSTRACT How species diversity is determined is an old question in community ecology but is not yet well understood. Island biotas offer opportunities to address this issue. Here, the ant fauna was studied in five moderately isolated islands of Japan and compared with those in reference regions on the nearby main islands to assess whether ants’ ecological characteristics affect their island colonisation success. Species that were more abundant in the reference regions were more frequently found on the islands, suggesting that ant communities on these islands are likely to have a nested subset structure. Species inhabiting both forests and open lands tended to occur more frequently in the study islands at least than those exclusively inhabiting forests, but this difference was not significant. In addition, nest sites and worker body size did not have significant effects on their occurrence in these islands. These results seem to suggest that the study islands as a whole offer various environments that support a variety of ant species with different ecological characteristics. It is suggested in this study that island size affects the species richness, as has often been reported.

ANT SPECIES DIVERSITY (HYMENOPTERA, FORMICIDAE) IN THE PURWODADI BOTANICAL GARDENS, EAST JAVA, INDONESIA

The ant species diversity in tropical Asia has been investigated in several locations, however, these studies mainly focused on well preserved forests or plantations. The ant fauna in urban parks has only been investigated in a limited number of locations in Singapore, Hong Kong, Macao, and Indonesia. We investigated the ant fauna in the Purwodadi Botanical Gardens, East Java, and compared it to the ant fauna obtained in the Bogor Botanical Gardens. In the Purwodadi Botanical Gardens, we employed the following sampling methods that were also carried out in Bogor: (1) visual searching of ants on tree trunks, (2) visual searching of litter and top-soil ants by hand sifting (3) visual searching of ant colonies, (4) visual searching of foraging workers. In total, 109 species in 44 genera from 9 subfamilies were collected. The number of species collected from litter and soil in Purwodadi was remarkably smaller than that in Bogor, while the ant species diversity on tree trunks was similar to that of Bogor. Of the109 species, 68 were common to Bogor. Arboreal ants were more similar than ground ants between Bogor and Purwodadi.

Ants in the clouds: A preliminary checklist of the ant (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) fauna of a Honduran cloud forest ecosystem, featuring a key to country genera

Ants in the clouds: A preliminary checklist of the ant (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) fauna of a Honduran cloud forest ecosystem, featuring a key to country genera

New insights into the diversity and distribution of Leptanillinae (Formicidae) within China

Leptanillinae is an ant subfamily of low taxonomic diversity and limited distribution within the Old World. Species within this subfamily are hypogaeic and are notoriously difficult to find and collect. As a result of their rarity, comparatively little is known about their natural history and distributions. Based upon new sampling efforts, we present significant new records of Leptanillinae from Mainland China, and Hong Kong SAR. Opamyrma hungvuong Yamane et al., 2008 is newly recorded from Sichuan Province, alongside a potential easterly record from Zhejiang Province, greatly extending its northern and eastern range distribution. Further, Protanilla lini Terayama, 2009 is recorded from Mainland China for the first time from Fujian Province and Hong Kong. We provide detailed collecting accounts for all newly recorded species, including associated habitat, nesting locality, colony composition, and for P. lini dietary information. All new localities for both species significantly extend their previously assumed distributions. Additional records of Leptanilla bethyloides Griebenow, 2024, and a note on L. japonica Baroni Urbani, 1977 from Hong Kong are provided. An updated distribution checklist of Leptanillinae from Mainland China and Taiwan is also provided. Our new records point towards an under sampled ant fauna of Mainland China underlying the need for new sampling approaches within the region.

Ants of Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park in arid Australia: Diversity, faunistic composition and habitat associations

Inland Australia supports by far the world's most diverse arid-adapted ant fauna, but there are no published studies of regional ant faunas from the central arid zone. Here we describe the ants collected by pitfall trapping at 22 sites in World Heritage-listed Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park (300 mm mean annual rainfall), representing all major vegetation types from spinifex grasslands to eucalypt woodlands. A total of 154 (mostly undescribed) ant species from 26 genera were recorded, with the richest genera being Melophorus (30 species), Monomorium (26), Iridomyrmex (18) and Camponotus (12). The pattern of species accumulation suggests that many more species remain to be collected from the Park, and we estimate that the total fauna consists of around 300 species. The most abundant ants were species of Iridomyrmex (collectively contributing 76% of all ants collected), as is the case throughout arid Australia. Species of Monomorium and Melophorus were also highly abundant. No exotic species were recorded. Ant species composition was strongly related to vegetation type, with a particular distinction between the various grasslands on one hand, and woodlands on the other. Unexpectedly, species richness was higher in structurally simple spinifex grasslands than in eucalypt woodlands. The woodland fauna lacks many taxa characteristic of such habitats in similarly arid regions of southern Australia, which we attribute to remoteness and small patch size. Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park supports an extremely diverse ant fauna, but surveys of other areas are required for an improved understanding of patterns of ant biodiversity in Australia's central arid zone.

Myrmecofauna (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of Bozcaada Island of Türkiye

Ants, keystone organisms of the nature, show great diversity in the Mediterranean basin. In addition to the mainland, the islands of the Mediterranean countries have great importance and species diversity in terms of ants. In the present study, the ant fauna of Bozcaada, the third largest island of Türkiye was investigated. Ant specimens were collected from Bozcaada in 2018-2019 by means of the aspirator. As a result of evaluation of 700 ant samples collected from the island, 60 species belonging to 4 subfamilies and 22 genera were identified. Among these, the subfamily Ponerinae, 10 genera and 48 species were recorded for the first time for the ant fauna of Bozcaada. The ant faunas of the Greek islands Samos, Chios and Lesbos, which are located closer to the Turkish mainland than the Turkish islands, Bozcaada and Gökçeada were compared with the Bray-Curtis similarity analysis.

Myrmecofauna (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) of Gökçeada Island, Türkiye

Türkiye is a very important country for faunal and floral studies due to its geographical location, the zoogeographic importance of its location and the biological richness it brings. This important area has been the subject of research on ants since second half of 19th century. However, studies on the ant fauna of the islands of Türkiye are very old and insufficient. For this reason, the ant fauna of Gökçeada, the largest island of Türkiye, was investigated by direct collecting and litter sifting methods in 2017-2018. 72 species belonging to 4 subfamilies and 23 genera were identified from 1105 ant samples obtained from 73 different localities and 16 different habitats. Among these species, Messor maculifrons Santschi, 1927 and Tetramorium sahlbergi Finzi, 1936 are new records for the ant fauna of Türkiye. In addition, the ergatoid queen of Hypoponera eduardi (Forel, 1894) was recorded for the first time outside the Afrotropical region.

Ants as Bioindicators of Habitat Conservation in a Conservation Area of the Atlantic Forest Biome

Ants are used as bioindicators because they play diverse ecological roles in terrestrial ecosystems. Their richness, abundance, and broad geographic distribution allow these insects to be used to predict the conditions of environmental conservation. This study aimed to evaluate the bioindicator potential of the ant fauna in Parque Estadual do Turvo, Rio Grande do Sul. Sampling was carried out in two events, in January and November of 2019, using soil and canopy pitfall traps, sardine baits, glucose baits, an entomological umbrella, and a sweeping net. We verified the association of ant species to the sampled strata (soil and leaf litter and vegetation) through an Indicator Species Analysis (ISA) and Principal Component Analysis (PCA). We identified 157 species belonging to 32 genera and eight subfamilies. The subfamily with the most outstanding richness was Myrmicinae, with 70 species, followed by Formicinae, with 40 species. The richest genera in the samples were Camponotus (S = 29), Pheidole (S = 23), and Linepithema (S = 11). Overall, 58 species occurred exclusively in the soil and leaf litter stratum and 23 in the arboreal stratum. Nine species had a significant indication value for the sampled strata, seven for soil and leaf litter, and two for the arboreal strata. The results show the potential of ant fauna as a basis for environmental impact studies and management and conservation plans in the southern Atlantic Forest biome.

Unrecognised Ant Megadiversity in the Australian Monsoonal Tropics III: The Meranoplus ajax Forel Complex

Australia’s monsoonal (seasonal) tropics are a global centre of ant diversity, but are largely unrecognised as such because the vast majority of its species are undescribed. Here we document another case of undescribed hyper-diversity within a taxon that is formally recognised as a single, widespread species, Meranoplus ajax Forel. We recognise 50 species among 125 specimens of M. ‘ajax’ that we CO1-barcoded, integrating CO1 clustering and divergence, morphological differentiation and geographic distribution. A large proportion (44%) of these species are represented by single records, indicating that very many additional species are yet to be collected in this extremely remote and sparsely populated region. Sampling has been concentrated in the Northern Territory, where 27 of the 50 species occur. If diversity in Western Australia and Queensland were similar to that in the Northern Territory, as appears likely, then the M. ajax complex would comprise >100 species. In 2000, when Australia’s monsoonal ant fauna was estimated to contain 1500 species, Meranoplus ajax was considered to represent a single species. Our previous analyses of a range of other taxa have shown that their diversity has been similarly under-appreciated in this estimate. Our findings suggest that the total number of ant species in monsoonal Australia is several thousand, which would make the region by far the world’s richest known.

The ants of the Galápagos Islands (Hymenoptera, Formicidae): a historical overview, checklist, and identification key.

The Galápagos ant fauna has long been understudied, with the last taxonomic summary being published almost a century ago. Here, a comprehensive and updated overview of the known ant species of the Galápagos Islands is provided with updated species distributions. The list is based on an extensive review of literature, the identification of more than 382,000 specimens deposited in different entomological collections, and recent expeditions to the islands. The ant fauna is composed of five subfamilies (Dolichoderinae, Dorylinae, Formicinae, Myrmicinae, and Ponerinae), 22 genera, 50 species, and 25 subspecies, although three species (Crematogastercrinosa Mayr, 1862, Camponotussenex (Smith, 1858), and Solenopsissaevissima (Smith, 1855)) are considered dubious records. Finally, an illustrated identification key of the species found in the archipelago is presented.

Ant diversity along elevational gradients in the European Alps: insights for conservation under a changing climate

Due to particular vulnerabilities and environmental constraints, Alpine faunas are exposed to significant threats from climate change. However, baseline diversity and distribution data to monitor the trends of key arthropod groups are often scarce. Ants are highly diversified and key ecological actors across terrestrial ecosystems, including mountain ranges. We investigated ant diversity and distribution in the Southern European Alps to provide detailed data over wide elevational gradients and make a first assessment of potential vulnerabilities in the face of global warming. We detected 40 species from 700 to over 2600 m asl, with progressively less diversity corresponding to higher elevations and lower temperatures. Maximum temperature was weakly related to ant diversity as compared to mean and minimum temperature. In shaping ant diversity, the highest elevation species had wide elevation ranges, consistent with Rapoport’s rule. We documented a fauna characterized by cold-adapted genera, species with wide geographic distributions and presumably high dispersal capabilities, no dietary specializations, and a high frequency of social parasitism. Concerning Bergmann’s rule, average ant species size was not larger in the coldest environments. Red wood ants, characterized by much more populous colonies as compared to the other ant species, had the highest number of ant individuals to be found at intermediate elevations and in woodland habitats. On the other hand, grasslands and shrublands proved to be the most species-rich habitats. Our data lay the groundwork for further investigation on elevational shifts and provide context for the discussion of key aspects of the management and conservation of European alpine ants.Implications for insect conservationThe cold climate of the European Alps has so far protected its ant fauna from the incursion of alien competitors as compared to what is observed in the Mediterranean region. The scarcity of species with restricted distribution ranges or high-elevation specialists, as well as diet specialists, may grant ants of the European Alps more resilience to climate change as compared to other Alpine arthropod groups. On the other hand, many species are highly interconnected by social parasitism relationships that may be vulnerable to ecological cascade effects. While forest habitats host red wood ants, which are often protected for their important ecological role, the importance of grassland must not be overlooked as they support the highest ant species richness.

The abundance of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and their ecological roles as predators in Arabica coffee plantations with different densities of shade trees

Shade-grown coffee, incorporated in an agroforestry system, is a common practice of coffee plantations in Aceh Tengah Regency, Aceh Province, Indonesia. Coffee is grown under the shade of a canopy of surrounding trees. Shade trees reduce excessive light and provide a home for various predatory animals, including predatory ants. Some growers plant a dense population of shade trees, while others plant less shade trees. A study to investigate the diversity of ants and their abundance in different densities of shade trees has been conducted from April until August 2023. Ants were sampled from coffee trees (arboreal ants) in two coffee plantations with dense populations of shade trees and two plantations with sparse shade trees. We found 13 ant species in both categories of plantations (combined). All ant species were found in sparsely shaded coffee plantations, and only five were recorded from densely shaded plantations. However, the abundance of ants was much higher in densely shaded plantations than in sparsely shaded plantations. The ant genera Technomyrmex and Componatus were the dominant ants found in sparsely shaded plantations, while the dominant ants in densely shaded plantations were the genera Componatus and Crematogaster. These ants are known as general predators and potentially are predators of coffee berry borer (CBB), a significant pest in the area. This research has shown how different densities of shade trees in coffee plantations affected the ant fauna, which could be used as a basis for ant conservation to increase their ecosystem service as predators.

Ant protection effectiveness in myrmecophytes and extrafloral nectary plants

AbstractExtrafloral nectaried plants and myrmecophytes offer resources to ants that engage in protective mutualisms. The role of different ant species in herbivore deterrence has long been analyzed by using insect baits, and ants are regarded as effective plant guards if they attack the insects. Here, by performing a literature review, we conducted a comparative investigation on which ants display aggression toward experimental prey, which ants are better plant guards, and which plants (extrafloral nectaried plants or myrmecophytes) are better defended by ants. Data revealed that studies evaluating ant aggression toward insect baits have been performed on 37 extrafloral nectaried plant species and 19 myrmecophytes, and have involved over 30 genera of ants. Extrafloral nectaried plants and myrmecophytes rely on specific ant fauna to defend them from herbivores. In extrafloral nectaried plants, Camponotus and Crematogaster were regarded as the best plant protectors, as they attacked insects in nearly all plants. In myrmecophytes, Azteca, Pheidole, and Pseudomyrmex were the most important insect attackers. Myrmecophytes were better protected by ants, as all insects were attacked; in extrafloral nectaried plants, some ants failed to attack the insects. Plants are patrolled by several different ants, but there is a core of ants that excel in protection, and this varies according to plant type (extrafloral nectaried plants and myrmecophytes). With this knowledge, it may be possible to label different ants as effective plant guards, to anticipate their effects on plant performance, and even to understand their potential role as biological control agents.

First inventory of Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) with detection of potential invasive species in National Park of Ehotilés islands, Côte d’Ivoire

Estuarine and wetland ecosystems are becoming increasingly altered by the concentration of human population near the coastline. A major threat to biodiversity related to this human footprint is the introduction of invasive alien species, particularly in isolated ecosystems like islands where biological invasion is often harmful. The National Park of Ehotilés Islands is an archipelago of 6 islands and a RAMSAR site subjected to disturbances activities like agriculture, illegal fisheries, and tourism. These factors often act as an accelerator for the introduction of invasive species. However, there is a lack of research conducted on insects, specifically ants on these islands. This study aimed to inventory the present ant fauna and estimate the vulnerability to tramp and potential invasive ant species. Ants were collected using Winkler, pitfall, and funnel traps on five islands. In total, 76 ant species were recorded. These species are distributed into 20 genera and five subfamilies: Dolichoderinae (5 species), Formicinae (11 species), Myrmicinae (49 species), Ponerinae (11 species) and Proceratiinae (1 species). We also detected two tramp and potentially invasive species: the ghost ant Tapinoma melanocephalum and the big-headed ant Pheidole megacephala. Ant communities are dominated by six species, namely Odontomachus troglodytes, Oecophylla longinoda, Nylanderia lepida, Pheidole sp.2, Monomorium invidium, and the invasive ghost ant Tapinoma melanocephalum. This work is the first to inventory ants on the Islands of Ehotilés National Park and may serve as a basis for conservation decisions as it demonstrates that this park is not spared from the introduction of invasive ant species.

Further records of social parasitic ants in Europe and review of the Bulgarian species.

Social parasitic ants exploit the colonies of other ant species, either permanently or temporarily. The permanent parasites are amongst the rarest species of ants, although their hosts may be very common. Due to their rarity and often restricted distribution range, most of them are listed as vulnerable. Filling in the gaps in geographical and host ranges will advance our understanding of the social parasitic lifestyle's origin and evolution. This study reports the first records of the slave-makers Myrmoxenusalgerianus (Cagniant, 1968) for Europe (Italy, Sicily) and M.ravouxi (André 1896) for Albania and the inquiline Anergatesatratulus (Schenck, 1852) for Malta (Gozo). We also report new localities of Camponotusuniversitatis Forel, 1890 for Albania and Myrmoxenusgordiagini Ruzsky, 1902, M.kraussei (Emery, 1915) and Anergatesatratulus for Bulgaria. Diversity, type of parasite-host relationships, host range, distribution and conservation of social parasitic ant species in Bulgaria are discussed. Although social parasitic ants are still understudied in Bulgaria, they represent 21% of the regional ant fauna.

Out of the desert: Paleoclimatic changes drove the diversification of arid-adapted Ocymyrmex ants in southern Africa

A highly endemic ant fauna is found in the arid regions of southern Africa, including species in the genus Ocymyrmex. This genus of ants has higher species richness in the western arid regions of southern Africa compared to tropical and subtropical parts of the continent. The processes that have produced these patterns of diversity and distribution of arid adapted ants in southern Africa have never been investigated. The diversification of many other taxa in the region has been associated with past climate fluctuations that occurred during the Miocene epoch. In this study, the nature and timing of historical processes that may have led to the diversification within Ocymyrmex were assessed. We hypothesized that past climate oscillations, characterized by long periods of aridification, have driven the current distribution of Ocymyrmex species that resulted in the highest species richness of the genus in the Deserts & xeric shrublands biome in southern Africa.Ninety-four Ocymyrmex worker specimens from Botswana, Kenya, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania and Zimbabwe, representing 21 currently described species and six morphospecies, were included in a phylogenomic analysis. Phylogenies for the genus, based on next generation sequencing data from ultraconserved elements, were inferred using Maximum Likelihood, and a dating analysis was performed using secondary age estimates as calibration points. A distribution database of Ocymyrmex records was used to assign species ranges, which were then coded according to major biomes in southern Africa and used as input for biogeographical analysis. We explored the phylogenomic relationships of Ocymyrmex and analysed these within a biogeographical and paleoclimatic framework to disentangle the potential processes responsible for diversification in this group. Dating analyses estimated that the crown age of Ocymyrmex dates to the Oligocene, around 32 Ma. Diversification within this group occurred between the mid-Miocene (∼12.5 Ma) and Pleistocene (∼2 Ma). Our biogeographic analyses suggest that Ocymyrmex species originated in the south-western region of southern Africa, which is now part of the Deserts & xeric shrublands biome and diversified into eastern subtropical areas during the Pliocene. Paleoclimatic changes resulting in increased aridity during the Miocene likely drove the diversification of the genus Ocymyrmex. It is most likely that the diversification of grasslands, because of historical climate change, facilitated the diversification of these ants to the eastern parts of southern Africa when open grasslands replaced forests during the early Miocene.

Morphological Characterization of Ant Species Found Within the Tropical Rainforest Zone of Calabar, Nigeria

Aim: This study was carried out to unravel the morphological variations that exist among ant species in the Rainforest zone of the University of Calabar Community. Method: Ants were collected from three locations (Botanical Garden, Cameroon and Unical Farms) within the University of Calabar. Direct hand-picking method and the pitfall traps method were utilized for sample collection. Thereafter, different morphological parameters including total length, head width, eye length, etc. were measured and analysed. Results: The results obtained showed a dominance of Formicinae with 3 species (35 %), followed by Myrmicinae with 2 species (30 %), and lastly Ponerinae and Dolichoderinae and Dorylinae with one species (5 %) each. A total of 7, 4 and 2 ant species were collected from the University of Calabar Botanical Garden, Cameroun and University of Calabar Farm sites respectively. Out of the 7 ant species, 3 species (50 %) were common to all the locations on campus, while another 2 species (45 %) were found exclusive to the Botanical Garden site. Conclusions: This work established that the morphology of ant faunas found in various areas of the campus varied significantly. It also concluded that the morphological space occupied by the ant fauna of the Botanical Garden was significantly larger than those collected from the other locations.