The Community Structure of Ants in Hordeum Vulgare and Grass Mixture Conditions in Central Europe

Abstract

Ants are an indicative group that play an important role in soil fertility by clearing the soil surface of vegetation as well as being predators of pests. The aim of the research was to assess the influence of environmental variables (pH soil, soil moisture, potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen) and the influence of different months on the dispersion of ants. Between the years 2018 and 2020, while investigating different types of crops, we recorded 864 individuals belonging to 9 species and 2 unspecified species (sp.). The dispersion of ants was affected by moisture, pH soil, phosphorus, potassium and nitrogen and an increase in value of the average number of individuals during spring and summer months was confirmed. We confirmed an increasing number of ant individuals with increasing values of potassium, phosphorus, nitrogen and soil moisture. A neutral pH of soil is optimal for ants. Our results yielded new information indicating that agricultural intensification affects ants which are important for the production of biomass and reduce the number of pests which also affect crop yields.