The purpose of this study was to determine if black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus Ord) influence harvester ant nest density and species composition within the shortgrass prairie biome of southwestern Kansas. Two treatments were established: areas colonized by prairie dogs and areas not colonized by prairie dogs. We recorded 183 harvester ant nests of 3 species. Harvester ant nest density did not differ significantly between prairie dog colonies (3.08 nests ha-1) and non-colonized shortgrass prairie sites (4.54 nests ha-1), but species composition did. Pogonomyrmex rugosus Emery was the most frequent species on prairie dog colonies where it accounted for 87% of ant nests present, as opposed to 33% on sites where prairie dogs were absent. Pogonomyrmex barbatus Smith was the most abundant species on non-colonized areas, making up 49% of the ant nests sampled. Pogonomyrmex occidentalis Cresson comprised 11% of ant nests sampled, and was nearly absent from prairie dog colonies (20 nests on non-colonized sites vs. 1 nest on prairie dog colonies). The average number of harvester ant species found per site was consistently greater on sites where prairie dogs were absent. The Journal of Range Management archives are made available by the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact lbry-journals@email.arizona.edu for further information. Migrated from OJS platform August 2020
Scholarly peer-reviewed articles published by the Society for Range Management. Access articles on a rolling-window basis from vol. 1, 1948 up to 5 years from the current year. Formerly Journal of Range Management (JRM). More recent content is available by subscription from SRM.