Between July 1997 and March 1999 ants of soil and litter were taken every three months with core samplers (21cm ø) in a primary rain forest, a secondary forest and two different systems of polycultures in central Amazonia (Brazil) and extracted in Berlese funnels. Greatest generic diversity wasfound in pirmary forest, while in secondary forest and the two polycultures it was about 20% and 30% lower, respectively. Biomass and median density of ants were also highest in primary forest followed by secondary forest and one of the polyculture, whereas the lowest number and biomass of ants was found in the second polyculture. The predatory species of Hypoponera reresented the biggest part of ant biomass in all areas (20%-30%), whereas the very abundant mostly tiny species (<2mm) of Solenopsis made up only 1,4%-3,9% of the ant biomass.Final Report 1996-1999
