COMPOSITION AND SPECIES DIVERSITY OF ANTS IN RESPONSE TO DIG-IN EFFECTS SIX TO EIGHT DAYS AFTER MOUNTING PITFALL TRAPS.

ABSTRACT

Ants, as ancient insects with diverse species and ecological importance, are the focus of numerous studies investigating their roles in ecosystems, ecosystem services, and biodiversity conservation. Understanding the composition and abundance of ant communities is vital to understanding how ecosystem alterations impact different species and identifying resilient species. Here, ant composition and diversity in aspects of the University of Benin Office Block, were evaluated in response to digging-in effects using pitfall traps six-eight days after the traps were mounted. Over a three-day sampling period, a total of 1,130 individual ants, belonging to four subfamilies (Formicinae, Myrmicinae, Ponerinae, and Dolichoderinae), nine genera, and twelve distinct ant species were captured. Initial high captures of ant activity density were followed by a decline throughout the sampling period. Notably, the Anonychomyrma species was the most abundant and dominant ant, with 822 individuals recorded, while Tetramorium sp. and Monomorium sp. were the least abundant. Non-parametric estimates predicted that approximately 96.3% and 81.41% of the true ant species present in the sampled area were captured in this survey. The findings hereof corroborate claims that collections in pitfall traps could be exaggerated by digging-in effects; thus, provisioning myrmecologists with biased outcomes in ecological surveys that involve the use of pitfalls especially when population estimates are vital for decision-making. These findings contribute to our understanding of how ant communities respond to habitat disturbance, but how this disturbance provides alters to their behaviours remains to be fully understood.