Homopterans and an Invasive Red Ant, Myrmica rubra (L.), in Maine

ABSTRACT Myrmica rubra (L.), is an invasive ant that is spreading across eastern North America. It is presently found in over 40 communities in Maine and areas in Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, and several provinces in the Canadian Maritimes and Ontario. In addition to disrupting native ant faunas, invasive ants also have been shown to influence homopteran abundance and species composition. We conducted surveys of Homoptera in infested and noninfested sites and conducted manipulative experiments to quantify the effects of M. rubra on homopteran abundance and composition in the summers of 2003, 2006, and 2007 on Mount Desert Island, ME. In 2003, Homoptera family-level richness was higher in infested sites compared with noninfested sites with two out of three sampling methods. Homopteran abundance in infested compared with noninfested sites depended upon the site. The sites with the highest population of M. rubra were associated with significant differences in Homoptera population abundanc...