Ant assemblage structure on cocoa trees in smallholder farms in the Centre Region of Cameroon

We investigated the ant community structure in cocoa farms in the Centre Region of Cameroon. Ants were collected on the cocoa trees during the years 2006 and 2007 using chemical knock-down. We tested the hypothesis of the existence of deterministic factor in the structuration of ant mosaic using C-Score; we assessed the relationship between the numerical dominant and subdominant ant species using Spearman correlation test and discussed on the influence of vegetation structure and farm management on the ant community structure. A total of 53 ant species belonging to 20 genera and five subfamilies were identified from a set of 51,525 workers collected. C-score analysis supported the hypothesis that ant community were structured by competition. Negative relationships were found between dominant ant species. Farming practices which were mainly pruning, chemical treatment and habitat structure appeared to influence the ecological status and distribution of dominant ant species.