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The devil to pay: a cost of mutualism with Myrmelachista schumanni ants in ‘devil's gardens’ is increased herbivory on Duroia hirsuta trees

Megan E Frederickson, Deborah M Gordon
Published 22 April 2007.DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2006.0415
Megan E Frederickson
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Deborah M Gordon
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Abstract

‘Devil's gardens’ are nearly pure stands of the myrmecophyte, Duroia hirsuta, that occur in Amazonian rainforests. Devil's gardens are created by Myrmelachista schumanni ants, which nest in D. hirsuta trees and kill other plants using formic acid as an herbicide. Here, we show that this ant–plant mutualism has an associated cost; by making devil's gardens, M. schumanni increases herbivory on D. hirsuta. We measured standing leaf herbivory on D. hirsuta trees and found that they sustain higher herbivory inside than outside devil's gardens. We also measured the rate of herbivory on nursery-grown D. hirsuta saplings planted inside and outside devil's gardens in ant-exclusion and control treatments. We found that when we excluded ants, herbivory on D. hirsuta was higher inside than outside devil's gardens. These results suggest that devil's gardens are a concentrated resource for herbivores. Myrmelachista schumanni workers defend D. hirsuta against herbivores, but do not fully counterbalance the high herbivore pressure in devil's gardens. We suggest that high herbivory may limit the spread of devil's gardens, possibly explaining why devil's gardens do not overrun Amazonian rainforests.

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Footnotes

    • Received December 17, 2006.
    • Accepted January 18, 2007.
  • © 2007 The Royal Society
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22 April 2007
Volume 274, issue 1613
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences: 274 (1613)
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The devil to pay: a cost of mutualism with Myrmelachista schumanni ants in ‘devil's gardens’ is increased herbivory on Duroia hirsuta trees
Megan E Frederickson, Deborah M Gordon
Proc. R. Soc. B 2007 274 1117-1123; DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2006.0415. Published 22 April 2007
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The devil to pay: a cost of mutualism with Myrmelachista schumanni ants in ‘devil's gardens’ is increased herbivory on Duroia hirsuta trees

Megan E Frederickson, Deborah M Gordon
Proc. R. Soc. B 2007 274 1117-1123; DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2006.0415. Published 22 April 2007

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