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SEASONAL PREDATORY ACTIVITY OF THE INTRODUCED RED WOOD ANT, FORMICA LUGUBRIS (HYMENOPTERA: FORMICIDAE) AT VALCARTIER, QUEBEC, IN 1976

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  31 May 2012

Jeremy N. McNeil ,
Johanne Delisle  and
R. J. Finnegan
Jeremy N. McNeil
Affiliation:
Département de biologie, Université Laval, Québec, Québec G1K 7P4
Johanne Delisle
Affiliation:
Département de biologie, Université Laval, Québec, Québec G1K 7P4
R. J. Finnegan
Affiliation:
Centre de Recherches forestières des Laurentides, Service Canadien des Forêts, Québec, Québec G1V 4C71
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Abstract

Predatory activity of Formica lugubris was studied from May through August 1976, to determine the variety of prey collected and the relative abundance of different groups of prey throughout the season. Prey consisted entirely of invertebrates, more than 95% being insects. Lepidoptera, especially Tortricidae, accounted for the major portion of prey during the sampling period. Using comparative rates of day and night prédation it was estimated that a large number of spruce bud worm were removed from the population by ant predators. It was also observed that prevailing weather conditions had a marked effect on predatory activity.

Résumé

L’activité prédatrice de Formica lugubris a été étudiée de mai à août 1976 afin de déterminer la composition de son régime alimentaire et d’évaluer l’abondance relative de chaque groupe de proies pendant la saison. Les proies récoltées sont entièrement des invertébrés dont 95% appartiennent à la classe des insectes. Les Lépidoptères, principalement les Tortricidae, ont été les plus fortement représentés lors de la période d’échantillonnage. En utilisant le taux comparatif de la prédation effectuée pendant le jour et la nuit, nous avons calculé que cette fourmi prélevait un grand nombre de tordeuses. Egalement, nous avons constaté que les conditions climatiques ont un effet marqué sur l’activité prédatrice.

Type
Articles
Information
The Canadian Entomologist , Volume 110 , Issue 1 , 01 January 1978 , pp. 85 - 90
Copyright
Copyright © Entomological Society of Canada 1978

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