The next time you walk through Manhattan or Broadway, don’t forget to look at the ground. A team of scientists has shown that an important part of the “wealth” of this city is thediversity of ants that inhabit it.
? Urban ecology has become a research area of growing interest ?, says Marko Pe? Arevi ?, from Columbia University, New York, co-author of the study. Among the taxa that best survive in urban environments, a group of arthropods stands out: ants. “Ants are found in all habitats in cities, from gardens to kitchens to ‘picnics’; they are diverse, showy and can have astrong ecological and economic impact“, say Pe? arevi? and his colleagues in a study published in the latest issue of the journalPloS ONE. In cities, these insects play an important roledigging through trash and disposing of waste. ? Where there are few ants, it is possible that carrion and dirt decompose more slowly ,? qualifies Pe? Arevi ?.
Analyzing inch by inch several streets of Broadway and Park Avenue, inNew York, researchers have shown that three species predominate in this city:the pavement ant (Tetramorium turf), the thief ant (Annoying solenopsis) Ythe ant of the cornfields (Lasius neoniger). In areas with trees, the Japanese ant is abundantNylanderia flavipes. “These species star in most human encounters in North American cities,” the authors conclude.
