Ants of the Forest and Dune Habitats of an Atlantic Coastal Barrier Island
Abstract
We investigated ant species richness and abundance of the maritime forest and dune habitats of Assateague Island, a barrier island off the coasts of Maryland and Virginia. We paired 5 transects of 100 m in forest habitats with 5 transects in dune and grassland habitats, with pitfall traps set every 10 m along each transect. During a 5-month period (May–September), we collected 26 species of ants, including 9 that had not been previously recorded on the island and 2 that had never been recorded east of Maryland's Chesapeake Bay. Forest habitats had a significantly higher species richness than the dunes, with 24 and 14 species collected, respectively. Our research provides baseline data on ant species richness for this temperate barrier island using pitfall-collection methods. We provide evidence for forest habitats supporting higher species richness and make suggestions for future research.
Faculty Members
- Denise Manole - Salisbury University, 1101 Camden Avenue, Salisbury, MD 21801.
- Dana L. Price - Salisbury University, 1101 Camden Avenue, Salisbury, MD 21801.
- Lien Miller - Salisbury University, 1101 Camden Avenue, Salisbury, MD 21801.
- Jennifer Selfridge - Maryland Department of Natural Resources, 909 Wye Mills Road, Wye Mills, MD 21679.
- Abigail Wilson - Salisbury University, 1101 Camden Avenue, Salisbury, MD 21801.
Themes
- Habitat diversity
- Ecological baseline data
- Ant species richness
- Conservation and biodiversity
- Comparative ecology
Categories
- Entomology
- Ecology
- Geosciences, atmospheric, and ocean sciences
- Biological and biomedical sciences
- Geological and earth sciences nec
- Geology earth science, general
- Geological and earth sciences
- Ecology, evolutionary biology, and epidemiology
- Ecology and evolutionary biology
- Biological and biomedical sciences, other