The invasion of big-headed ants in the Kenyan savannah has led to significant ecological changes, including altering the hunting behavior of local lions. Research suggests that the ants' activities have left trees undefended, resulting in lions shifting their diet to consume more beef, particularly buffalo, instead of zebras. This chain of consequences has disrupted the delicate balance of the ecosystem, making lions less effective hunters and impacting the entire food web.
An invasive ant has upended an entire Kenyan ecosystem. https://t.co/0cYs58kUBS
Brawling ants in Kenya are causing ripples in the food web that can be felt even by the savanna's apex predator. Here's how lions are affected by invasive insects. π https://t.co/ekp61Z2RuY
Nature's delicate balance is being thrown off worldwide by #invasivespecies. π An international team of #NSFfunded scientists' study in @ScienceMagazine examines how invasive big-headed ants' activities make Kenyan lions less effective hunters. π¦π¦ https://t.co/vJgvX84mn5 https://t.co/V8WPtSHPmB
A new Science study investigates how an ant invasion led to lions eating fewer zebra in a Kenyan ecosystem. https://t.co/GThn0YQyEX https://t.co/BjtxVwoR3c
Nature's delicate balance is being thrown off worldwide by #invasivespecies. π An international team of #NSFfunded scientists' study in @Science examines the cascading effects of how invasive big-headed ants are making lions less effective hunters. π¦π¦ https://t.co/RkUH8ZauCl https://t.co/vigDs81N7j
Lions, elephants and ants, oh my. Learn how an invasive insect in Kenya caused a convoluted chain of consequences which has lions snacking on buffalo in favour of zebras: https://t.co/cw88h1vaOO π
Lions in Kenya are eating more beef. The reason isn't fast food burgers, but an invasive ant that is leaving trees on the savanna undefended. Really. https://t.co/ekp61Z2RuY
Big-headed ants are invading new territories in Kenyaβand the consequences are rippling through the whole ecosystem https://t.co/iXazOsGaWS
The invasion of big-headed ants set off a cascade of changes on the savanna in Kenya, seemingly even altering the diet of lions that live and hunt there, researchers reported. https://t.co/BD6Mtz1zmb
A tiny invasive ant muscled into a Kenyan savannah and sparked such a dramatic transformation in the landscape that even the local lions changed the way they hunt, according to research published Thursday. https://t.co/0DB19BewzA