Ant–plant symbioses involve plants that provide hollow structures specialized for housing
ants and often food to ants. In return, the inhabiting ants protect plants against herbivores …

In ecological communities, several species interact with one another to regulate their
abundance. For example, mutualisms benefit all species involved, commensalism benefits …

Direct and indirect negative interactions between ant guards and pollinators on ant-plants
are expected for two reasons. First, aggressive ants may deter pollinators directly. Second …

Quantifying costs and benefits of ostensibly mutualistic interactions is an important step
toward understanding their evolutionary trajectories. In food‐for‐protection interactions …

Abstract Background and Aims Determining the sources of variation in floral morphology is
crucial to understanding the mechanisms underlying Angiosperm evolution. The selection of …

Species engaged in multiple, simultaneous mutualisms are subject to trade-offs in their
mutualistic investment if the traits involved in each interaction are overlapping, which can …

Plant associations with protective ants are widespread among angiosperms, but carry the
risk that ants will deter pollinators as well as herbivores. Such conflict, and adaptations to …

Sambucus javanica is a perennial herb with extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) on its
inflorescences. To explore the ecological functions of EFNs, a factorial combination …

Mutualisms, or interactions between species that lead to net fitness benefits for each species
involved, are stable and ubiquitous in nature mostly due to “byproduct benefits” stemming …

Myrmecophytism occurs in plants that offer ants a nesting space and, often, food rewards in
exchange for protection from predators and competitors. Such biotic protection by ants can …