Influence of extrafloral nectary phenology on ant-plant mutualistic networks in a neotropical savanna

• Published in: Ecological entomology Vol. 38; no. 5; pp. 463 - 469
• Main Authors: LANGE, DENISE, DÁTTILO, WESLEY, DEL-CLARO, KLEBER
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.10.2013; Blackwell; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Animal and plant ecology; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Ant-plant interactions; Biological and medical sciences; coevolutionary process; correlation; ecological networks; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; generalist core; Herbivores; Mutualism; nectar secretion; nectaries; Phenology; Plant communities; savannas; Synecology; temporal variation; Terrestrial ecosystems; Formicidae; Savannah; Insecta; Interaction; temporal variation; Nectary; Ant―plant interactions; Coevolution; Formicoidea; Mutualism; Time variation; ecological networks; Phenology; Arthropoda; coevolutionary process; Hymenoptera; Invertebrata; Neotropical Region; generalist core; Aculeata

Temporal variation has been one remarkable feature of ecological interactions. In ant–plant mutualism, this variation is widely known, although little is understood about the mechanisms that shape these variations. This study tested whether or not the phenology of extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) influe...