Wouter DEKONINCK, Léon BAERT, Marc VANKERKVOORDE, Lut VAN NIEUWENHUYSE, and Frederik HENDRICKX (2017)
Ant communities in recently restored dune grassland ecosystems in Belgium (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
Bulletin de la Société royale belge d'Entomologie / Bulletin van de Koninklijke Belgische Vereniging voor Entomologie, 153:113–120.
In the period 2000-2001 nature restoration projects drastically reshaped the Nature Reserve in
Lombardsijde near the Ijzer Estuary in Flanders, Belgium. Dikes were constructed and new dune
grasslands were installed. Seven years after the restoration the ant fauna of these newly created sites
was compared with reference sites from foredunes, dune grasslands and grey dunes. Ants were
collected with pitfall traps in 10 sample sites during 4 years. Our results showed that after 7 even 10
years of nature restoration, the ant fauna in the newly created sites still differs substantially from those
of the reference sites. However, typical dune grassland ant species like Myrmica specioides, Myrmica
sabuleti and Lasius psammophilus were already present at the newly created sites. Our data also
suggests that it takes a longer period for characteristic dune grassland ants species to colonize and
settle in these new environments than for other invertebrate groups like spiders and carabid beetles
that were also collected and studied during the same project and reported before.
Peer Review, Open Access, PDF available, RBINS Collection(s)
nature restoration, Formicidae, community analysis, foredunes, grey dunes
Document Actions