@article {BF-2385,
	title = {Fire resilience of ant assemblages in long-unburnt savanna of northern Australia},
	journal = {Austral Ecology},
	volume = {33},
	year = {2008},
	month = {11/2008},
	pages = {830 - 838},
	abstract = {Tropical savannas and rainforests contrast in their flammability and the fire resilience of their associated species. While savanna species generally exhibit high resilience to burning, there is much debate about the fire resilience of forest-associated species, and the persistence of forest patches in a flammable savanna matrix. Where fire has been excluded, savanna tends on a trajectory towards forest, with an increase in forest-associated plants and animal species. This study tested the idea that given the high proportion of forest-associated taxa in long-unburnt savanna, the fauna of these areas would be expected to exhibit less resilience to fire than the fauna in frequently burnt savannas. The study investigated the immediate and short-term effects on ant assemblages of re-introducing fire into long-unburnt savanna in northern Australia. The ant fauna exhibited high resistance to fires, with no significant short-term change in mean abundance or species richness; instead, seasonality had a far stronger influence on overall ant activity. Fire caused dramatic declines in dominance of the patchily distributed forest-associated species Oecophylla smaragdina and Papyrius sp., but had no effect on overall dominance by open savanna species of Iridomyrmex. Dominance by Iridomyrmex pallidus declined, but this was compensated for by increases in I. reburrus, while two other species of Iridomyrmex showed no change. This indicates a high level of functional redundancy among dominant species of Iridomyrmex, which universally dominate open savanna communities, but not of dominant forest-associated species. Overall, our findings demonstrate a high degree of fire-resilience of the long-unburnt savanna ant fauna. Despite the occurrence of forest-associated species, the high proportion of savanna species persisting in this habitat means that long-unburnt savanna retains the general response characteristics of frequently burnt savanna.},
	doi = {10.1111/j.1442-9993.2008.01848.x},
	author = {Parr, CL and Andersen, A. N.}
}
@article {BF-2373,
	title = {A preliminary investigation of temporal patterns in semiarid ant communities: Variation with habitat type},
	journal = {Austral Ecology},
	volume = {33},
	year = {2008},
	month = {08/2008},
	pages = {653 - 662},
	abstract = {This study reports on preliminary findings of habitat-contingent temporal variability in ant assemblages in Purnululu National Park in northern Australia{\textquoteright}s semiarid tropics, by sampling at the end of the dry season (October 2004) and the end of the wet season (April 2005). Six grids of 15 pitfall traps were established in each of the spinifex, sandplain and gorge habitats. Community composition was dominated by behaviourally dominant ants (Iridomyrmex spp.) and climate specialists (Melophorus and Meranoplus spp.). Ant activity was higher in the wet season sampling period, with greater species richness and abundance. Interestingly, temporal variation in ant assemblage richness, abundance and composition varied markedly with habitat type. While there were large differences between sampling periods for the spinifex and sandplain habitat, this was not the case in the gorges. These temporal changes in ant assemblages are postulated to be linked with major environmental differences between the two sampling periods, driven by seasonal climatic conditions. It is likely that these changes influenced the ant assemblages through species differences in physiological tolerance levels, ecological requirements and competitive ability. This study demonstrates the need, in highly seasonal environments, to consider the temporal context of studies in relation to habitat type, particularly when undertaking biodiversity surveys and monitoring.},
	doi = {10.1111/j.1442-9993.2008.01832.x},
	author = {Barrow, L and Parr, CL}
}
@article {BF-2352,
	title = {Contrasting fire-related resilience of ecologically dominant ants in tropical savannas of northern Australia},
	journal = {Diversity and Distributions},
	volume = {13},
	year = {2007},
	month = {07/2007},
	pages = {438 - 446},
	abstract = {This paper examines the role of fire in mediating the relative abundance of two of the world{\textquoteright}s major ecologically dominant ant genera, Iridomyrmex and Oecophylla, where they coexist across the tropical savanna landscapes of northern Australia. These taxa have contrasting biogeographical histories, which are predicted to lead to contrasting responses to fire. Iridomyrmex is an autochthonous Australian genus that has radiated primarily in the arid zone; as such, its abundance is predicted to be promoted by frequent fire because this maintains an open habitat. In contrast, Oecophylla is a genus of leaf-nesting ants occurring in the canopies of Old World tropical rainforest, and is a recent arrival to Australia in geological time; the abundance of these ants is predicted to decline under frequent fire. We test these predictions using results from a landscape-scale fire experiment, where three experimental fire regimes (including no fire) were applied to replicated subcatchments over a 5-year period. Using sweep nets, ants were sampled in the grass layer (the habitat layer of greatest overlap between Iridomyrmex and Oecophylla) in eucalypt woodland (canopy cover < 30\%) and open eucalypt forest (canopy cover about 50\%) habitats. A total of 27 species from 11 genera were collected during the study; eight were common enough for statistical analysis, and the abundances of four of these were significantly affected by fire treatment. As predicted, the abundance of Iridomyrmex was promoted by fire, whereas that of Oecophylla declined. These changes occurred only under late-season (relatively high intensity) fires, and for Oecophylla occurred only in open forest (not woodland) habitat. This fire-mediated relationship between Iridomyrmex and Oecophylla mirrors the much broader, ecosystem-wide dynamic between eucalypt-dominated savanna and rainforest in tropical Australia, with savannas dominated by fire-resistant sclerophyll elements of Australian origin, and rainforest dominated by fire-sensitive mesophyll elements of South-East Asian origin.},
	issn = {1366951614724642},
	doi = {10.1111/j.1472-4642.2007.00353.x},
	author = {Andersen, A. N. and Parr, CL and Lowe, LM and M{\"u}ller, Warren J.}
}
@article {BF-2356,
	title = {Habitat type influences fire resilience of ant assemblages in the semi-arid tropics of Northern Australia},
	journal = {Journal of Arid Environments},
	volume = {69},
	year = {2007},
	month = {04/2007},
	pages = {80 - 95},
	abstract = {Although fire is an annual occurrence in savanna systems and is widely used as a tool in conservation management, the effects of fire on biodiversity remain poorly understood. This study investigated the response of ant assemblages, a key component of invertebrate diversity, to burning in two dominant savanna ecosystems (spinifex uplands and sandplain) in the Australian semi-arid tropics. A total of 180 pitfall traps were established in each habitat and each sampling period (wet and dry season). We collected a total of 89 046 ants from 18 genera, representing 126 species. The response of ant assemblages to fire varied with habitat type. We relate this response to habitat-specific fire induced differences in microhabitat structure and the vertical distribution of biomass. There were large differences in assemblage composition in the spinifex habitat, where vegetation composition and structure varied considerably between burnt and unburnt sites. In contrast, assemblages were largely resilient to single fire events in the sandplain, where vegetation change following fire was less pronounced. This study highlights the need for conservation managers to be aware of how different habitats respond to fire and what the consequences of different management actions might be.},
	doi = {10.1016/j.jaridenv.2006.08.005},
	author = {Barrow, L and Parr, CL and KOHEN, J}
}
@article {BF-2366,
	title = {Savanna fires increase rates and distances of seed dispersal by ants},
	journal = {Oecologia},
	volume = {151},
	year = {2007},
	month = {1/2007},
	pages = {33 - 41},
	abstract = {Myrmecochory (seed dispersal by ants) is a prominent dispersal mechanism in many environments, and can play a key role in local vegetation dynamics. Here we investigate its interaction with another key process in vegetation dynamics{\textemdash}fire. We examine ant dispersal of seeds immediately before and after experimental burning in an Australian tropical savanna, one of the world{\textquoteright}s most fire-prone ecosystems. Specifically, our study addressed the effects of burning on: (1) the composition of ants removing seeds, (2) number of seed removals, and (3) distance of seed dispersal. Fire led to higher rates of seed removal post-fire when compared with unburnt habitat, and markedly altered dispersal distance, with mean dispersal distance increasing more than twofold (from 1.6 to 3.8 m), and many distance dispersal events greater than the pre-fire maximum (7.55 m) being recorded. These changes were due primarily to longer foraging ranges of species of Iridomyrmex, most likely in response to the simplification of their foraging landscape. The significance of enhanced seed-removal rates and distance dispersal for seedling establishment is unclear because the benefits to plants in having their seeds dispersed by ants in northern Australia are poorly known. However, an enhanced removal rate would enhance any benefit of reduced predation by rodents. Similarly, the broader range of dispersal distances would appear to benefit plants in terms of reduced parent{\textendash}offspring conflict and sibling competition, and the location of favourable seedling microsites. Given the high frequency of fire in Australian tropical savannas, enhanced benefits of seed dispersal by ants would apply for much of the year.},
	doi = {10.1007/s00442-006-0570-5},
	author = {Parr, CL and Andersen, A. N. and Chastagnol, C and Duffaud, C}
}
@article {BF-1139,
	title = {Burning for biodiversity in the Top End},
	journal = {Australasian Plant Conservation},
	number = {14},
	year = {2006},
	pages = {3-May},
	author = {Andersen, A. N. and Parr, CL and McKaige, BJ}
}
@article {BF-2339,
	title = {Patch Mosaic Burning for Biodiversity Conservation: a Critique of the Pyrodiversity Paradigm},
	journal = {Conservation Biology},
	volume = {20},
	year = {2006},
	month = {12/2006},
	pages = {1610 - 1619},
	abstract = {Fire management is increasingly focusing on introducing heterogeneity in burning patterns under the assumption that {\textquotedblleft}pyrodiversity begets biodiversity.{\textquotedblright} This concept has been formalized as patch mosaic burning (PMB), in which fire is manipulated to create a mosaic of patches representative of a range of fire histories to generate heterogeneity across space and time. Although PMB is an intuitively appealing concept, it has received little critical analysis. Thus we examined ecosystems where PMB has received the most attention and has been the most extensively implemented: tropical and subtropical savannas of Australia and Africa. We identified serious shortcomings of PMB: the ecological significance of different burning patterns remains unknown and details of desired fire mosaics remain unspecified. This has led to fire-management plans based on pyrodiversity rhetoric that lacks substance in terms of operational guidelines and capacity for meaningful evaluation. We also suggest that not all fire patterns are ecologically meaningful: this seems particularly true for the highly fire-prone savannas of Australia and South Africa. We argue that biodiversity-needs-pyrodiversity advocacy needs to be replaced with a more critical consideration of the levels of pyrodiversity needed for biodiversity and greater attention to operational guidelines for its implementation.},
	doi = {10.1111/j.1523-1739.2006.00492.x},
	author = {Parr, CL and Andersen, A. N.}
}
@article {BF-1149,
	title = {Savanna fires increase rate of myrmecochory and dispersal distance by ants.},
	journal = {Oecologia},
	number = {151},
	year = {2006},
	pages = {33-41},
	author = {Parr, CL and Andersen, A. N. and Chastagnol, C and Duffaud, C}
}
@article {BF-2321,
	title = {Constraint and Competition in Assemblages: A Cross-Continental and Modeling Approach for Ants},
	journal = {The American Naturalist},
	volume = {165},
	year = {2005},
	month = {04/2005},
	pages = {481 - 494},
	abstract = {The mechanisms leading to structure in local assemblages are controversial. On the one hand, assemblage structure is thought to be the outcome of local interactions determined by the properties of species and their responses to the local environment. Alternatively, this structure has been shown to be an emergent property of assemblages of identical individuals or of random sampling of a regional assemblage. In ants at baits, a combination of environmental stress and interspecific competition is widely held to lead to a unimodal relationship between the abundance of dominant ants and species richness. It is thought that in comparatively adverse environments, both abundance and richness are low. As habitats become more favorable, abundance increases until the abundance of dominant ants is so high that they exclude those that are subordinate and so depress richness. Here we demonstrate empirically that this relationship is remarkably similar across three continents. Using a null model approach, we then show that the ascending part of the relationship is largely constrained to take this form not simply as a consequence of stress but also as a result of the shape of abundance frequency distributions. While the form of the species-abundance frequency distribution can also produce the descending part of the relationship, interspecific competition might lead to it too. Scatter about the relationship, which is generally not discussed in the literature, may well be a consequence of resource availability and environmental patchiness. Our results draw attention to the significance of regional processes in structuring ant assemblages.},
	doi = {10.1086/428292},
	author = {Parr, CL and Sinclair, Brent~J. and Andersen, A. N. and Gaston, Kevin~J. and Chown, Steven~L.}
}
