Planting more native trees and shrubs on farms can help reduce the impact of climate change on ant populations, a new report has found.
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Woody native vegetation and reduced land use has been found to increase insect biodiversity and lessen their vulnerability to changes in the environment, according to new research by the University of New England, the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage, and the University of Melbourne.
Associate Professor Nigel Andrew, from the UNE School of Environmental and Rural Sciences, said the study looked at how changes to the landscape could improve insect biodiversity conservation..
“We found that having more native trees and shrubs on a farm will enhance ant biodiversity and help mitigate the impacts of climate change,” he said.
“If you have a lot of exotic vegetation and bare ground, then many ant species will become more vulnerable to rapid change.”
Researchers sampled ant biodiversity in an area west of Armidale, with 210,000 arthropods collected and sorted into major groups. Ants, which made up 63 per cent of the sample, were identified to species level.
“There was greater ant richness associated with greater native woody plant canopy cover, while there was lower species richness with higher cultivation, grazing intensity and exotic plants,” he said
Mr Andrew said that ant diversity was critical for the environment and landholders.
“Ants dominate the environment we live in, so if you lose ant species you can lose ecosystem functions,” he said. “Ants collect seeds, aerate the soil and predate on pests. If you change the type of ants in an environment, you can change the dynamics and ecology of your landscape.”
Researchers are using predictive modelling to help land managers track the impact of changing grazing intensity, or the type of land cover, on ant richness.
“If you want to build in resilience to environmental change on your farm, then managing and increasing native vegetation is an important component,” Mr Andrews said. “Not only will it help in the health of the landscape, but it will also help them become more adaptable to a warming climate.”