Experimental Determination of <i>Labidus coecus</i> Army Ant Diet: Novel Evidence for a Feeding Strategy
ABSTRACT Army ants prey mainly on invertebrates, occasionally attacking vertebrates. However, it remains unclear whether these attacks are defensive or for consumption. By testing the diet of Labidus coecus , we show that they can be attracted to vertebrate meat, which may expand the army ants' ecological role, spurring new research.
Authors
- Anderson Dias De Menezes (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0006-9757-4642)
- Raquel Leite Castro de Lima (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7811-0486)
- Leticia Moreira (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4518-8591)
- Rafael Rodrigues Ferreira (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7255-3489)
- Hilário Póvoas de Lima (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9952-2946)
Institutions
- Universidade da Amazônia (BR)
- Universidade do Estado do Pará (BR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Biotropica
- Published
- 2025-06-21
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1111/btp.70054
- Primary Topic
- Insect and Arachnid Ecology and Behavior
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior
- Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico