Assessing the Australian Termite Diversity Anomaly: How Habitat and Rainfall Affect Termite Assemblages
Termites are important ecosystem engineers in tropical habitats, with different feeding groups able to decompose wood, grass, litter, and soil organic matter. In most tropical regions, termite abundance and species diversity are assumed to increase with rainfall, with highest levels found in rainfor...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2021-04-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2021.657444/full |
| _version_ | 1818740077792067584 |
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| author | Rebecca A. Clement Rebecca A. Clement Habacuc Flores-Moreno Lucas A. Cernusak Alexander W. Cheesman Alexander W. Cheesman Abbey R. Yatsko Steven D. Allison Steven D. Allison Paul Eggleton Amy E. Zanne |
| author_facet | Rebecca A. Clement Rebecca A. Clement Habacuc Flores-Moreno Lucas A. Cernusak Alexander W. Cheesman Alexander W. Cheesman Abbey R. Yatsko Steven D. Allison Steven D. Allison Paul Eggleton Amy E. Zanne |
| author_sort | Rebecca A. Clement |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Termites are important ecosystem engineers in tropical habitats, with different feeding groups able to decompose wood, grass, litter, and soil organic matter. In most tropical regions, termite abundance and species diversity are assumed to increase with rainfall, with highest levels found in rainforests. However, in the Australian tropics, this pattern is thought to be reversed, with lower species richness and termite abundance found in rainforest than drier habitats. The potential mechanisms underlying this pattern remain unclear. We compared termite assemblages (abundance, activity, diversity, and feeding group composition) across five sites along a precipitation gradient (ranging from ∼800 to 4,000 mm annual rainfall), spanning dry and wet savanna habitats, wet sclerophyll, and lowland and upland rainforests in tropical North Queensland. Moving from dry to wet habitats, we observed dramatic decreases in termite abundance in both mounds and dead wood occupancy, with greater abundance and activity at savanna sites (low precipitation) compared with rainforest or sclerophyll sites (high precipitation). We also observed a turnover in termite species and feeding group diversity across sites that were close together, but in different habitats. Termite species and feeding group richness were highest in savanna sites, with 13 termite species from wood-, litter-, grass-, dung-, and soil-feeding groups, while only five termite species were encountered in rainforest and wet sclerophyll sites—all wood feeders. These results suggest that the Australian termite diversity anomaly may be partly driven by how specific feeding groups colonized habitats across Australia. Consequently, termites in Australian rainforests may be less important in ecosystem processes, such as carbon and nutrient cycling during decomposition, compared with termites in other tropical rainforests. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-18T01:35:00Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-4fffec48929249168b69c0551ece988c |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2296-701X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-18T01:35:00Z |
| publishDate | 2021-04-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj.art-4fffec48929249168b69c0551ece988c2022-12-21T21:25:28ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution2296-701X2021-04-01910.3389/fevo.2021.657444657444Assessing the Australian Termite Diversity Anomaly: How Habitat and Rainfall Affect Termite AssemblagesRebecca A. Clement0Rebecca A. Clement1Habacuc Flores-Moreno2Lucas A. Cernusak3Alexander W. Cheesman4Alexander W. Cheesman5Abbey R. Yatsko6Steven D. Allison7Steven D. Allison8Paul Eggleton9Amy E. Zanne10Department of Biological Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC, United StatesComputational Biology Institute, The Milken Institute School of Public Health, The George Washington University, Washington, DC, United StatesDepartment of Biological Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC, United StatesCollege of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Cairns, QLD, AustraliaCollege of Science and Engineering, James Cook University, Cairns, QLD, AustraliaCollege of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, United KingdomDepartment of Biological Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC, United StatesDepartment of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United StatesDepartment of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United StatesLife Sciences Department, The Natural History Museum, London, United KingdomDepartment of Biological Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC, United StatesTermites are important ecosystem engineers in tropical habitats, with different feeding groups able to decompose wood, grass, litter, and soil organic matter. In most tropical regions, termite abundance and species diversity are assumed to increase with rainfall, with highest levels found in rainforests. However, in the Australian tropics, this pattern is thought to be reversed, with lower species richness and termite abundance found in rainforest than drier habitats. The potential mechanisms underlying this pattern remain unclear. We compared termite assemblages (abundance, activity, diversity, and feeding group composition) across five sites along a precipitation gradient (ranging from ∼800 to 4,000 mm annual rainfall), spanning dry and wet savanna habitats, wet sclerophyll, and lowland and upland rainforests in tropical North Queensland. Moving from dry to wet habitats, we observed dramatic decreases in termite abundance in both mounds and dead wood occupancy, with greater abundance and activity at savanna sites (low precipitation) compared with rainforest or sclerophyll sites (high precipitation). We also observed a turnover in termite species and feeding group diversity across sites that were close together, but in different habitats. Termite species and feeding group richness were highest in savanna sites, with 13 termite species from wood-, litter-, grass-, dung-, and soil-feeding groups, while only five termite species were encountered in rainforest and wet sclerophyll sites—all wood feeders. These results suggest that the Australian termite diversity anomaly may be partly driven by how specific feeding groups colonized habitats across Australia. Consequently, termites in Australian rainforests may be less important in ecosystem processes, such as carbon and nutrient cycling during decomposition, compared with termites in other tropical rainforests.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2021.657444/fullIsopteracommunity assemblyecosystem engineersBlattodeatermite community assemblycarbon cycle |
| spellingShingle | Rebecca A. Clement Rebecca A. Clement Habacuc Flores-Moreno Lucas A. Cernusak Alexander W. Cheesman Alexander W. Cheesman Abbey R. Yatsko Steven D. Allison Steven D. Allison Paul Eggleton Amy E. Zanne Assessing the Australian Termite Diversity Anomaly: How Habitat and Rainfall Affect Termite Assemblages Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution Isoptera community assembly ecosystem engineers Blattodea termite community assembly carbon cycle |
| title | Assessing the Australian Termite Diversity Anomaly: How Habitat and Rainfall Affect Termite Assemblages |
| title_full | Assessing the Australian Termite Diversity Anomaly: How Habitat and Rainfall Affect Termite Assemblages |
| title_fullStr | Assessing the Australian Termite Diversity Anomaly: How Habitat and Rainfall Affect Termite Assemblages |
| title_full_unstemmed | Assessing the Australian Termite Diversity Anomaly: How Habitat and Rainfall Affect Termite Assemblages |
| title_short | Assessing the Australian Termite Diversity Anomaly: How Habitat and Rainfall Affect Termite Assemblages |
| title_sort | assessing the australian termite diversity anomaly how habitat and rainfall affect termite assemblages |
| topic | Isoptera community assembly ecosystem engineers Blattodea termite community assembly carbon cycle |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fevo.2021.657444/full |
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