Young T P, Stubblefield Cynthia H, Isbell Lynne A
Mpala Research Centre, P.O. Box 555, Nanyuki, Kenya, , , , , , KE.
The Louis Calder Center, Fordham University, Drawer K, Armonk, NY 10504, USA, , , , , , US.
Oecologia. 1996 Dec;109(1):98-107. doi: 10.1007/s004420050063.
On the black cotton soils of the Laikipia ecosystem in Kenya, two swollen-thorn acacia species support nine ant species, four of which are apparently obligate plant-ants. Among the ants, there are five species of Crematogaster, two species of Camponotus, and one each of Tetraponera and Lepisota. Acacia drepanolobium is host to four ant species that are both common and mutually exclusive. These four ant species, and an additional non-exclusive ant species, tend to occur on trees of different sizes, implying a succession of ant occupants. Nonetheless, all four exclusive species occur in substantial proportions on trees of intermediate size. There is direct evidence that an early successional ant species (Tetraponera penzigi) is actively evicted by two late successional ant species in the genus Crematogaster. There was also some evidence of height differentiation among ant species resident on A. seyal. Different acacia-ant species had different direct effects on A. drepanolobium. Extrafloral nectaries were eaten and destroyed only on trees inhabited by Tetraponera. Axillary shoots were eaten only on trees inhabited by C. nigriceps (potentially another early successional ant). This was associated with more new terminal shoots and healthier leaves than other trees, but also the virtual elimination of flowering and fruiting. Different resident acacia-ant species also had characteristic relationships with other insects. Among the four mutually exclusive ant species, only Crematogaster sjostedti was associated with two species of Camponotus, at least one of which (C. rufoglaucus) appears to be a foraging non-resident. A. drepanolobium trees occupied by C. sjostedti were also far more heavily infested with leaf galls than were trees occupied by other ant species. A. drepanolobium trees occupied by C. mimosae and C. sjostedti uniquely had tended adult scale insects. This diversity of ant inhabitants, and their strikingly different relationships with their hosts and other insect species, are examples of coexisting diversity on an apparently uniform resource.
在肯尼亚莱基皮亚生态系统的黑色棉土上，两种带刺金合欢树种为9种蚂蚁提供了生存支持，其中4种显然是专性树栖蚁。在这些蚂蚁中，有5种是举腹蚁属，2种是弓背蚁属，还有1种是四节大头蚁属和1种鳞蚁属。弯刺金合欢是4种常见且相互排斥的蚂蚁物种的宿主。这4种蚂蚁物种，以及另外一种非排他性蚂蚁物种，倾向于出现在不同大小的树上，这意味着蚂蚁占据者有一个演替过程。尽管如此，所有4种排他性物种在中等大小的树上都有相当大的比例。有直接证据表明，一种早期演替的蚂蚁物种（彭氏四节大头蚁）会被举腹蚁属的两种晚期演替蚂蚁物种主动驱逐。也有一些证据表明，栖居于塞内加尔金合欢上的蚂蚁物种存在高度差异。不同的金合欢蚁物种对弯刺金合欢有不同的直接影响。只有在被四节大头蚁占据的树上，花外蜜腺才会被吃掉和破坏。只有在被黑褐举腹蚁（可能是另一种早期演替蚂蚁）占据的树上，腋芽才会被吃掉。这与其他树相比，这些树上有更多新的顶芽和更健康的叶子，但也几乎完全没有开花和结果。不同的栖居金合欢蚁物种与其他昆虫也有特定的关系。在4种相互排斥的蚂蚁物种中，只有肖氏举腹蚁与两种弓背蚁有关联，其中至少有一种（红褐弓背蚁）似乎是觅食性非栖居者。被肖氏举腹蚁占据的弯刺金合欢树比被其他蚂蚁物种占据的树受到叶瘿的侵害要严重得多。被含羞草举腹蚁和肖氏举腹蚁占据的弯刺金合欢树独特地有大量成年介壳虫。这种蚂蚁栖居者的多样性，以及它们与宿主和其他昆虫物种截然不同的关系，是在看似均匀的资源上共存多样性的例子。
