Ants on Sapling Cecropia in Forest and Urban Areas of Trinidad (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

The mutualism between Azteca ants and Cecropia trees is among the most conspicuous and best-studied ant-plant relationships in the Neotropics. We surveyed ants on 60 Cecropia peltata saplings (1.2-2.0 m) at four forest and two urban sites in Trinidad. Azteca ants inhabited significantly more forest saplings (34/40) than urban saplings (4/20). We found 27 other ant species on the saplings; most were tending phloem-feeding Hemiptera. There were significantly fewer non-Azteca ant species records on forest saplings (0.65/sapling) than on urban saplings (1.65/sapling). Our results confirm earlier findings that the Azteca-Cecropia mutualism is disrupted in urban environments.