The Long-Term Effects of Reduced Competitive Ability on Foraging Success of an Invasive Pest Species.

Ant species like Pheidole megacephala (F.), Solenopsis invicta (Buren), and the Argentine ant, Linepithema humile (Mayr), have repeatedly been reported to be strongly associated with honeydew-producing arthropods like aphids, scale insects, and mealybugs, effectively protecting them from biological control agents like parasitoids. Here we report the results of a successful trial using pheromone dispensers to suppress Argentine ant activity over large sections in a commercial vineyard over a period of two months and preventing ant access into and foraging within the vine canopy.

Toxicity and utilization of chemical weapons: does toxicity and venom utilization contribute to the formation of species communities?

Toxicity and the utilization of venom are essential features in the ecology of many animal species and have been hypothesized to be important factors contributing to the assembly of communities through competitive interactions. Ants of the genus Monomorium utilize a variety of venom compositions, which have been reported to give them a competitive advantage. Here, we investigate two pairs of Monomorium species, which differ in the structural compositions of their venom and their co-occurrence patterns with the invasive Argentine ant.

Synthetic pheromones as a management technique - dispensers reduce Linepithema humile activity in a commercial vineyard.

Background: Invasive ants, such as the Argentine ant, have often been reported to facilitate honeydew-producing hemipteran pests such as mealybugs, which can be vectors of plant pathogens. Synthetic pheromones may offer a target-specific method to control such ants and consequently lower the abundance of honeydew-producing pests. Here we report the results of a trial to suppress Argentine ants in grapevines using ant pheromone dispensers.

Disruption of foraging by a dominant invasive species to decrease its competitive ability.

Invasive species are a major threat to biodiversity when dominant within their newly established habitat. The globally distributed Argentine ant Linepithema humile has been reported to break the trade-off between interference and exploitative competition, achieve high population densities, and overpower nests of many endemic ant species. We have used the sensitivity of the Argentine ant to the synthetic trail pheromone (Z)-9-hexadecanal to investigate species interactions for the first time.