USE OF PLANT-DERIVED FOOD RESOURCES BY ANTS IN THE DRY TROPICAL LOWLANDS OF COASTAL VERACRUZ, MEXICO

This research quantified the number of ant-plant associations mediated by liquid/energy food sources and the intensity of their use by ants. Thirty ant species and 102 plant species were related in 312 associations. The Leguminosae (23 species) was the family of plants most visited by ants. Camponotus planatus was the ant using the most plant species (72) as food source. Ant-plant specificity was very low. Food resources most used by ants were nectar from reproductive structures, homopteran honeydew, floral nectar, and extrafloral nectar. Extrafloral nectaries are associated with leaves and most species in tropical dry forests flush new leaves after the onset of the annual rainy season. Both ant-extrafloral nectar and ant-homopteran associations show a significant increase after the start of the rainy season, decreasing abruptly once the dry season begins. In contrast, associations between ants and both floral nectar and other reproductive structures reach their peak during the dry season. There is a significant negative ant-floral nectar and ant-homopteran relationship at any given season; this may reflect the use of alternative (dry season/wet season) resources (floral nectar/honeydew) with similar nutritional value.