Project:

Garden Roof Ant Biodiversity

Students:

Clarissa McCarthy, Victoria Ferreira

School:

Marymount High School,

Mentors:

Robert Getz

Abstract:

In our study, we plan to investigate the diversity and interactions among the ants inhabiting the roof at Marymount School of New York High School. We plan to observe and conduct experiments to answer whether or not the ants will begin to compete territorially for the resources available on the rooftop, because of the living environments they were placed into. Research has already been done concerning ants’ roles in the cities, and how they act. A study sampled ants in different medians scattered across various avenues in New York City. The study concluded that of the avenues sampled, Tetramorium caespitum was the most abundant species; furthermore, they were found to be highly territorial (Pećarević et al., 2010). We hypothesize that if ants are introduced to a new environment, for example, life on a roof, then the species that inhabit the area will begin to compete over territory as compared to the typical territorial mannerisms of ants found in the wild (Hölldobler & Lumsden, n

Poster:

Team samples: