Abstract

GALLEGO-ROPERO, María Cristina  and  SALGUERO RIVERA, Beatriz. Assembly Ants Tropical Dry Forest, Cali Botanical Garden. Colomb. for. [online]. 2015, vol.18, n.1, pp.139-150. ISSN 0120-0739.  https://doi.org/10.14483/udistrital.jour.colomb.for.2015.1.a08.

The ant assemblages of a fragment of secondary tropical dry forest located in the Botanical Garden of Cali are presented. Two habitats were chosen: a fragment of forest and a pasture matrix. Samples were taken monthly for six months, using a linear transect of 100 m, with 10 stations spaced 10 m. At each station pitfall traps, epigeal bait and arboreal, sifting and removal of 1 m² of litter and manual capture survey techniques were applied. Richness, abundance and diversity of ant habitats were determined. Correlation coefficients and regression between temperature, relative humidity and richness of ants were calculated. A total of 13 170 ants representing 55 species, 35 genera and six subfamilies were collected. The forest had the highest species richness with 90.9%. This wealth of diversity indicates the conservation value of the Valle del Cauca myrmecofauna. Although the forest is in the process of regeneration, strongly disturbed by constant fire and human intervention, the ant species richness shows that it remains an invaluable source of biological resources for the conservation of species.

Keywords : dry ecosystems; formicidae; fragmentation; hymenoptera.

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