The multidimensional nutritional niche of fungus-cultivar provisioning in free-ranging colonies of a neotropical leafcutter ant
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The multidimensional nutritional niche of fungus-cultivar provisioning in free-ranging colonies of a neotropical leafcutter ant. / Crumière, Antonin J. J.; James, Aidan; Lannes, Pol; Mallett, Sophie; Michelsen, Anders; Rinnan, Riikka; Shik, Jonathan Z.
In: Ecology Letters, Vol. 24, No. 11, 2021, p. 2439-2451.Research output: Contribution to journal › Letter › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - The multidimensional nutritional niche of fungus-cultivar provisioning in free-ranging colonies of a neotropical leafcutter ant
AU - Crumière, Antonin J. J.
AU - James, Aidan
AU - Lannes, Pol
AU - Mallett, Sophie
AU - Michelsen, Anders
AU - Rinnan, Riikka
AU - Shik, Jonathan Z.
N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2021 The Authors. Ecology Letters published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
PY - 2021
Y1 - 2021
N2 - Foraging trails of leafcutter colonies are iconic scenes in the Neotropics, with ants collecting freshly cut plant fragments to provision a fungal food crop. We hypothesised that the fungus-cultivar's requirements for macronutrients and minerals govern the foraging niche breadth of Atta colombica leafcutter ants. Analyses of plant fragments carried by foragers showed how nutrients from fruits, flowers and leaves combine to maximise cultivar performance. While the most commonly foraged leaves delivered excess protein relative to the cultivar's needs, in vitro experiments showed that the minerals P, Al and Fe may expand the leafcutter foraging niche by enhancing the cultivar's tolerance to protein-biased substrates. A suite of other minerals reduces cultivar performance in ways that may render plant fragments with optimal macronutrient blends unsuitable for provisioning. Our approach highlights how the nutritional challenges of provisioning a mutualist can govern the multidimensional realised niche available to a generalist insect herbivore.
AB - Foraging trails of leafcutter colonies are iconic scenes in the Neotropics, with ants collecting freshly cut plant fragments to provision a fungal food crop. We hypothesised that the fungus-cultivar's requirements for macronutrients and minerals govern the foraging niche breadth of Atta colombica leafcutter ants. Analyses of plant fragments carried by foragers showed how nutrients from fruits, flowers and leaves combine to maximise cultivar performance. While the most commonly foraged leaves delivered excess protein relative to the cultivar's needs, in vitro experiments showed that the minerals P, Al and Fe may expand the leafcutter foraging niche by enhancing the cultivar's tolerance to protein-biased substrates. A suite of other minerals reduces cultivar performance in ways that may render plant fragments with optimal macronutrient blends unsuitable for provisioning. Our approach highlights how the nutritional challenges of provisioning a mutualist can govern the multidimensional realised niche available to a generalist insect herbivore.
KW - ecophysiology
KW - fundamental and realised niches
KW - fungus
KW - herbivory
KW - leafcutter ants
KW - nutritional geometry
U2 - 10.1111/ele.13865
DO - 10.1111/ele.13865
M3 - Letter
C2 - 34418263
AN - SCOPUS:85113174498
VL - 24
SP - 2439
EP - 2451
JO - Ecology Letters
JF - Ecology Letters
SN - 1461-023X
IS - 11
ER -
ID: 279117392