Survey of Ant Genera and Biodiversity in Toco
Abstract
Tropical regions are widely known for their high species diversity, which is often threatened by the growth and encroachment of human activity into natural areas. The ants of Trinidad have been studied, but most surveys and records are restricted to the Port of Spain area on the northeastern coast. This study is focused on the ant biodiversity in northeastern Trinidad, a region approximately 87 km from Port of Spain. Over the course of seven days, ants were surveyed on the Jammev Beach Resort property (Toco) using baited ground pitfall traps, baited arboreal pitfall traps, and from freely collected specimen. A total of 298 specimens were collected, representing 12 genera and tribes of Formicidae. The most prevalent ants were Tertamorium sp with 105 specimens and unidentifiable Formicinae with 88 specimens. A Shannon Diversity Index of 1.925 was obtained, indicating an average amount of diversity.References
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