Herbivory of Leaf-Cutting Ants

Download or read book Herbivory of Leaf-Cutting Ants written by Rainer Wirth and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-04-18 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Plant-animal interactions have become a focus of ecological research, with the processes of herbivory being of special interest. This volume examines the interactions of leaf-cutting ants with the rainforest vegetation on Barro Colorado Islands in Central America. It is the synthesis of field research on multiple scales extending over a period of several years. This work can serve as a model study summarizing and extending knowledge about herbivorous insect-plant relationships, and the resulting consequences on structural and functional features of tropical ecosystems. The text is an invaluable reference for researchers and land managers working in the fields of plant-animal interactions, herbivory, community ecology and biodiversity.