Ineffectiveness of ants in the reproductive success of two sympatric myrmecophilous plants: the success of endophytic beetles

Extrafloral nectaried plants attract ants, which may protect them against herbivory and increase plant fruit set production. In some cases, however, ants are ineffective against herbivores. Such events occur, for instance, when herbivores present adaptations to avoid ant predation. Thus, the outputs of these interactions depend on factors such as ant identity, plant phenology, and herbivore features. Here, we investigated the endophytic florivorous beetles’ impact on the reproductive success of their host plants, two sympatric Banisteriopsis (Malpighiaceae) species, depending on the action of EFNs visiting ants. We experimentally manipulated the presence of ants and herbivores on B. malifolia and B. laevifolia species during their reproductive period. We performed treatments where three similar inflorescences were selected to be (I) control branch, with no manipulations, (II) beetle-free branch, isolated with textile cover, and (III) ant-free branch, isolated at the base with atoxic wax. As a result, we observed (i) that florivorous Anthonomus beetles have a negative impact on Banisteriopsis reproductive success; (ii) ants fail in protecting plants against floral endophytic beetles; and (iii) most of the results were specie-specific. Our results indicate that these systems present very conditional outcomes that depend on THE intrinsic factors of each plant species.