Variation in nutrient use in ant assemblages along an extensive elevational gradient on Mt Kilimanjaro

Aim We used the extensive climatic and land-use gradient on Mt Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, to study large-scale variation of nutrient use in ground-foraging ant communities. In particular, we tested the hypothesis that recruitment of ants to six different nutrients would vary with elevation and between land-use regimes. We also tested whether the nutrient space (number and evenness of nutrients) used by ants decreases as species richness declines with elevation, a pattern expected because of complementarity in nutritional intake of species.