Data from Queiroz et al Ant diversity in tropical biomes can be reduced by half during dry seasons: a meta-analysis investigating the effect of seasonality on ants.xlsx

Data from Queiroz et al Ant diversity in tropical biomes can be reduced by half during dry seasons: a meta-analysis investigating the effect of seasonality on ants Abstract Tropical studies present seasonal variation of insect richness, density, and changes in species composition. However, responses of assemblages to climate change associated with seasons may not follow the same patterns across ecosystems due to biotic and abiotic factors (e.g., resources and conditions). These idiosyncratic responses might be particularly true in Brazilian territory, a country with various environments and vegetation types across a vast geographical range that harbors one of the most diverse ant faunas in the world. This study addressed the relationship between ant diversity and seasonal variation using published data collected in Brazilian territory. Specifically, we tested the effect of the main seasons on ant abundance and richness. Seasonal patterns of diversity are poorly explored for ants in Brazil (53 from 416 studies published between 2000 and 2018). These studies were developed mainly in the Atlantic Forest biome, collected ants with Pitfall traps as a sampling method, and covered the soil/litter stratum. Considering all papers, doing a simple “vote-counting” (by comparisons of the number of significant results), authors find similar ant abundance, richness, and species composition between seasons, as often proposed in literature. However, when we performed a meta-analysis, we observed a clear pattern of seasonal variation, with higher ant abundance and richness in the wet/summer season. The low number of sampling events and years among the studies are the main methodological limitations preventing broader conclusions. Our systematic review, however, reveals the seasonality effect in reducing ant diversity on the dry season, especially in the Cerrado. Additionally, we point out that differences between biomes also indicate the need to explore seasonal effects among vegetation types in each biome.

来自Queiroz等人的研究：《热带生物群系蚂蚁多样性在旱季可减半——一项探究季节变化对蚂蚁影响的元分析（meta-analysis）》
摘要：热带地区相关研究均表明，昆虫类群的物种丰富度、种群密度存在季节波动，且物种组成亦会发生改变。然而，由于生物与非生物因素（如资源可获得性与环境条件）的影响，不同生态系统中，生物群落对与季节相关的气候变化的响应模式可能并不统一。这一特异性响应在巴西境内尤为显著：该国地域辽阔，拥有多样的生境与植被类型，孕育了全球最为丰富的蚂蚁区系之一。
本研究依托巴西境内已发表的观测数据，探讨蚂蚁多样性与季节变化之间的关联。具体而言，我们检验了主要季节对蚂蚁种群丰度与物种丰富度的影响。针对巴西境内蚂蚁的季节多样性模式，现有研究仍有待深入挖掘——在2000至2018年间发表的416篇相关文献中，仅53篇涉及该主题。这些研究主要集中在大西洋森林（Atlantic Forest）生物群系，采用陷阱诱捕法（Pitfall traps）采集蚂蚁样本，且采样层位均为土壤/枯落物层。
综合所有文献，传统的计数投票法（vote-counting，即通过比较显著结果的数量进行分析）显示，不同季节间的蚂蚁种群丰度、物种丰富度与物种组成并无显著差异，这与此前文献中的主流观点一致。然而，当我们开展元分析后，却观测到清晰的季节变化模式：湿季/夏季的蚂蚁种群丰度与物种丰富度显著更高。
现有研究普遍存在采样事件与采样年份偏少的问题，这是制约我们得出更普适性结论的主要方法学局限。不过，本系统综述（systematic review）仍揭示了季节变化对旱季蚂蚁多样性的抑制效应，尤其是在塞拉多（Cerrado）生物群系中。此外，我们还发现不同生物群系间存在差异，这表明需进一步探究各生物群系内不同植被类型的季节变化效应。