LIGHTNING ECOLOGY
Araujo R. F., E. M. Gora, C. H. S. Celes, S. P. Yanoviak, and H. C. Muller-Landau. 2025. Quantifying patterns of lightning-caused canopy disturbances via integration of drone imagery and field surveys. Biotropica xx: xx-xx.
Gora, E. M., H. Muller-Landau, K. C. Cushman, J. H. Richards, P. M. Bitzer, J. C. Burchfield, P. Narváez, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2025. How some tropical trees benefit from being struck by lightning: evidence for Dipteryx oleifera and other large-statured trees. New Phytologist 246: 1554-1566. DOI: 10.1111/nph.70062
Lawhorn, K. A., J. H. Richards, E. M. Gora, J. C. Burchfield, P. M. Bitzer, C. Gutierrez, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2025. The influence of lightning on insect and fungal dynamics in a lowland tropical forest. Ecology 106: e4521. DOI: 10.1002/ecy.4521
Yanoviak, S. P., E. M. Gora, C. Gutierrez, J. C. Burchfield, and P. M. Bitzer. 2024. The ecological effects of lightning in a tropical forest. Pages 523-528 in The First 100 Years of Research on Barro Colorado Island: Plant and Ecosystem Science, ed. H. C. Muller-Landau and S. J. Wright: Smithsonian Institution Scholarly Press, Washington, D. C.
Narvaez, J. P., S. P. Yanoviak, P. M. Bitzer, J. C. Burchfield, and E. M. Gora. 2024. Effects of urbanization on cloud-to-ground lightning strike frequency: a global perspective. Journal of the Royal Society Interface 21: 20240257. DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2024.0257
Gora, E. M., S. A. Schnitzer, P. M. Bitzer, J. C. Burchfield, C. Gutierrez, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2023. Lianas increase lightning-caused disturbance severity in a tropical forest. New Phytologist. DOI: 10.1111/nph.18856
Richards, J. H., E. M. Gora, C. Gutierrez, J. C. Burchfield, P. M. Bitzer, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2022. Tropical tree species differ in damage and mortality from lightning. Nature Plants 8: 1007-1013. DOI: 10.1038/s41477-022-01230-x
Yanoviak, S. P., E. M. Gora, J. C. Burchfield, P. M. Bitzer, and M. Detto. 2017. Quantification and identification of lightning damage in tropical forests. Ecology and Evolution 7: 5111-5122. doi: 10.1002/ece3.3095. pdf
Gora, E. M., P. M. Bitzer, J. C. Burchfield, S. A. Schnitzer, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2017. Effects of lightning on trees: a predictive model based on in situ electrical resistivity. Ecology and Evolution 7: 8523-8534. doi: 10.1002/ece3.3347. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., E. Gora, J. Fredley, P. M. Bitzer, R.-M. Muzika, and W. P. Carson. 2015. Direct effects of lightning in temperate forests: a review and preliminary survey in a hemlock-hardwood forest of the northern United States. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 45: 1258-1268. doi: 10.1139/cjfr-2015-0081 pdf
Gora, E. and S. P. Yanoviak. 2015. Electrical properties of temperate forest trees: a review and quantitative comparison with vines. Canadian Journal of Forest Research 45: 236-245. doi: 10.1139/cjfr-2014-0380 pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. 2013. Shock value: are lianas natural lightning rods? Pages 147-153 in: M. Lowman, S. Devy, and T. Ganesh (eds.). Treetops at risk: challenges of global forest canopies. Springer, New York. pdf
FOREST ARTHROPOD ECOLOGY & BEHAVIOR
Lawhorn, K. A. and S. P. Yanoviak. 2022. Variation in larval thermal tolerance of three saproxylic beetle species. Environmental Entomology 51: 1218-1223. DOI: 10.1093/ee/nvac091
Lawhorn, K. A., I. Wirasakti, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2023. Coleoptera monitoring following prescribed fire disturbance yields 43 new state species records for Kentucky, USA. Coleopterists Bulletin 77: 587-600. DOI: 10.1649/0010-065X-77.4.587
Lawhorn, K. A., I. Wirasakti, E. Jones, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2023. Local abundance of a myrmecophilous beetle, Limulodes paradoxus Matthews (Coleoptera: Ptiliidae), in Kentucky, USA. Coleopterists Bulletin 77: 609-615. DOI: 10.1649/0010-065X-77.4.609.
Prince, D. C. and S. P. Yanoviak. 2023. Multisensory homing in the neotropical understory twig-nesting ant Pseudomyrmex boopis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Myrmecological News 33: 169-177. DOI: 10.25849/myrmecol.news_033:169.
Seiler, A. R., E. J. Schleff, O. M. Gamsky, A. Y. Stark, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2025. Effects of simulated squirrel branch landings on ants and other arboreal arthropods. The Science of Nature xx: xx-xx. DOI:
Yanoviak, S. P., B. J. Adams, and A. Y. Stark. The tropical forest canopy as an ecological theater for arboreal ants. Pages xx-xx in: Barro Colorado: the First 100 Years. Smithsonian Contributions to Biology. H. Muller-Landau, R. Page, S. J. Wright, W. Wcislo, and R. Stallard, eds. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C. DOI:
Stark, A. Y. and S. P. Yanoviak. 2018. Adhesion and running speed of a tropical arboreal ant (Cephalotes atratus) on wet substrates. J. Roy. Soc. Open Science 5: 181540. doi: 10.1098/rsos.181540. pdf
Gripshover, N. D., S. P. Yanoviak, and E. M. Gora. 2018. A functional comparison of swimming behavior in two temperate forest ants (Camponotus pennsylvanicus and Formica subsericea) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Annals of the Entomological Society of America 111: 319-325. doi: 10.1093/aesa/say026. pdf
Stark, A. Y., K. Arstingstall, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2018. Adhesive performance of tropical arboreal ants varies with substrate temperature. Journal of Experimental Biology 221: jeb17184. doi: 10.1242/jeb.171843. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., C. Silveri, A. Y. Stark, J. T. Van Stan, and D. F. Levia. 2017. Surface roughness affects the running speed of tropical canopy ants. Biotropica 49: 92-100. doi: 10.1111/btp.12349. pdf
Adams, B. J., S. A. Schnitzer, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2017. Trees as islands: canopy ant species richness increases with the size of liana-free trees in a Neotropical forest. Ecography 40: 1067-1075. doi: 10.1111/ecog.02608. pdf
Spicer, M. E., A. Y. Stark, B. J. Adams, R. Kneale, M. Kaspari, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2017. Thermal constraints on foraging of tropical canopy ants. Oecologia 183: 1007-1017. doi: 10.1007/s00442-017-3825-4. pdf
Stark, A. Y., B. J. Adams, J. L. Fredley, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2017. Out on a limb: thermal microenvironments in the rainforest canopy and their effects on ant foraging behavior. Journal of Thermal Biology 69: 32-38. doi: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2017.06.002. pdf
Bujan, J., S. P. Yanoviak, and M. E. Kaspari. 2016. Desiccation resistance in tropical insects: causes and mechanisms underlying variability in a Panama ant community. Ecology and Evolution 6: 6282-6291. doi: 10.1002/ece3.2355. pdf
Gora, E. M., N. Gripshover, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2016. Orientation at the water surface by the carpenter ant Camponotus pennsylvanicus (De Geer, 1773) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Myrmecological News 23: 33-39. pdf
Kaspari, M., N. A. Clay, J. A. Lucas, S. Revzen, A. D. Kay, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2016. Thermal adaptation and phosphorus shape thermal performance in an assemblage of rainforest ants. Ecology 97: 1038-1047. doi: 10.1890/15-1225.1 pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. 2015. Effects of lianas on canopy arthropod community structure. Pp. 345-361 in S. A. Schnitzer, F. Bongers, R. J. Burnham, and F. E. Putz (eds.) Ecology of lianas. John Wiley & Sons, UK. doi: 10.1002/9781118392409.ch24 pdf
Verble-Pearson, R. M., M. E. Gifford, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2015. Variation in thermal tolerance of North American ants. Journal of Thermal Biology 48: 65-68. doi: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2014.12.006 pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. and D. N. Frederick. 2014. Water surface locomotion in tropical canopy ants. Journal of Experimental Biology 217: 2163-2170. pdf
Kaspari, M., N. Clay, J. Lucas, S. P. Yanoviak, and A. Kay. 2014. Thermal adaptation generates a diversity of thermal limits in a rainforest ant community. Global Change Biology 21: 1092-1102 doi: 10.1111/gcb.12750 pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. and S. A. Schnitzer. 2013. Functional roles of lianas for forest canopy animals. Pages 209-214 in: M. Lowman, S. Devy, and T. Ganesh (eds.). Treetops at risk: challenges of global forest canopies. Springer, New York. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., C. Silveri, C. A. Hamm, and M. Solis. 2012. Stem characteristics and ant body size in a Costa Rican rain forest. Journal of Tropical Ecology 28: 199-204. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., S. M. Berghoff, K. E. Linsenmair, and G. Zotz. 2011. Effects of an epiphytic orchid on arboreal ant community structure in Panama. Biotropica 43: 731-737. pdf
Weiser, M. D., N. J. Sanders, D. Agosti, et al. 2010. Canopy and litter ant assemblages share similar climate-species density relationships. Biology Letters 6: 769-772. pdf
Clay, N. A., M. Bauer, M. Solis, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2010. Arboreal substrates influence foraging in tropical ants. Ecological Entomology 35: 417-423. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., B. L. Fisher, and A. Alonso. 2007. Arboreal ant diversity (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in a central African forest. African Journal of Ecology 46: 60-66. pdf
Schonberg, L., J. T. Longino, N. M. Nadkarni, S. P. Yanoviak, and J. C. Gering. 2004. Arboreal ant species richness in primary forest, secondary forest, and pasture habitats of a tropical montane landscape. Biotropica 36: 402-409. pdf
Kaspari, M. E. and S. P. Yanoviak. 2001. Bait use in tropical litter and canopy ants–evidence of differences in nutrient limitation. Biotropica 33: 207-211. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. and M. E. Kaspari. 2000. Community structure and the habitat templet: ant assemblages in the tropical forest canopy and litter. Oikos 89: 259-266. pdf
GLIDING ARTHROPODS (also see Robert Dudley’s site)
Yanoviak, S. P. and R. Dudley. Gliding arthropods and the evolution of winged flight in insects. Pages xx-xx in: Barro Colorado: the First 100 Years. Smithsonian Contributions to Biology. H. Muller-Landau, R. Page, S. J. Wright, W. Wcislo, and R. Stallard, eds. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C. DOI:
Yanoviak, S. P. and R. Dudley. 2018. Jumping and the aerial behavior of aquatic mayfly larvae (Myobaetis ellenae, Baetidae). Arthropod Structure and Development 47: 370-374. doi: 10.1016/j.asd.2017.06.005. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., Y. Munk and R. Dudley. 2015. Arachnid aloft: directed aerial descent in Neotropical canopy spiders. Journal of the Royal Society Interface 20150534. doi: 10.1098/rsif.2015.0534 pdf
Munk, Y., S. P. Yanoviak, M. A. R. Koehl , and R. Dudley. 2015. The descent of ant: field-measured performance of gliding ants. Journal of Experimental Biology 218: 1393-1401. doi:10.1242/jeb.106914 pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., Y. Munk and R. Dudley. 2011. Evolution and ecology of directed aerial descent in arboreal ants. Integrative and Comparative Biology 51: 944-956. pdf
Dudley, R. and S. P. Yanoviak. 2011. Animal aloft: the origins of aerial behavior and flight. Integrative and Comparative Biology 51: 926-936. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., Y. Munk, M. Kaspari, and R. Dudley. 2010. Aerial maneuverability in wingless gliding ants (Cephalotes atratus). Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B 277: 2199-2204. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. 2010. The directed aerial descent of arboreal ants. Pages 223-224 in: L. Lach, C. L. Parr, and K. Abbott (eds.). Ant ecology. Oxford University Press, Oxford. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., M. Kaspari, and R. Dudley. 2009. Gliding hexapods and the origins of insect aerial behaviour. Biology Letters 5: 510-512. pdf
Bradley, T. J., A. D. Briscoe, S. G. Brady, et al. 2009. Episodes in insect evolution. Integrative and Comparative Biology 49: 590-606. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., B. L. Fisher, and A. Alonso. 2008. Directed aerial descent behavior in African canopy ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Journal of Insect Behavior 21: 164-171. pdf
Dudley, R., G. Byrnes, S. P. Yanoviak, B. Borrell, R. Brown, and J. McGuire. 2007. Gliding and the functional origins of flight: biomechanical novelty or necessity? Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 38: 179-201. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. and R. Dudley. 2006. The role of visual cues in directed aerial descent of Cephalotes atratus workers (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Journal of Experimental Biology 209: 1777-1783. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., R. Dudley and M. Kaspari. 2005. Directed aerial descent in canopy ants. Nature 433: 624-626. pdf
“BERRY” ANT PARASITES
Dáttilo, W., J. C. F. Falcão, S. P. Yanoviak, G. Poinar, Jr., and T. J. Izzo. 2013. The geographic distribution of parasite induced fruit mimicry in Cephalotes atratus (Formicidae: Myrmicinae). Journal of Parasitology 99: 155-157. pdf
Verble, R. M., A. D. Meyer, M. G. Kleve, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2012. Exoskeletal thinning in Cephalotes atratus ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) parasitized by Myrmeconema neotropicum (Nematoda: Tetradonematidae). Journal of Parasitology 98: 226-228. pdf
Shik, J. Z., M. Kaspari, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2011. Preliminary assessment of metabolic costs of the nematode Myrmeconema neotropicum on its host, the tropical ant Cephalotes atratus. Journal of Parasitology 97: 958-959. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. 2010. “Berry” ants: an eye-popping symbiosis from the rainforest canopy. Pages 98-99 in: L. Lach, C. L. Parr, and K. Abbott (eds.). Ant ecology. Oxford University Press, Oxford. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., M. Kaspari, R. Dudley, and G. Poinar, Jr. 2008. Parasite-induced fruit mimicry in a tropical canopy ant. The American Naturalist 171: 536-544. pdf
Poinar, G., Jr. and S. P. Yanoviak. 2008. Myrmeconema neotropicum n. g., n. sp., a new tetradonematid nematode parasitising South American populations of Cephalotes atratus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), with the discovery of an apparent parasite-induced host morph. Systematic Parasitology 69: 145-153. pdf
LITTER ARTHROPOD ECOLOGY (also see Mike Kaspari’s site)
Schleff, E. J., M. W. Chmielewski, A. Y. Stark, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2025. A comparison of adhesive performance among six cursorial spider species. Journal of Arachnology xx: xx-xx.
Verble-Pearson, R. M. and S. P. Yanoviak. 2014. Effects of fire intensity on litter arthropod communities in Ozark oak forests, Arkansas, U.S.A. American Midland Naturalist 172: 14-24. pdf
Verble, R. M. and S. P. Yanoviak. 2013. Short-term effects of prescribed burning on ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) assemblages in Ozark forests. Annals of the Entomological Society of America 106: 198‑203. pdf
Kaspari, M., and S. P. Yanoviak. 2009. Biogeochemistry and the structure of tropical brown food webs. Ecology 90: 3342-3351. pdf
Kaspari, M., and S. P. Yanoviak. 2008. Biogeography of litter depth in tropical forests: evaluating the phosphorus growth rate hypothesis. Functional Ecology 22: 919-923. pdf
BIOLOGY OF SODIUM (also see Mike Kaspari’s site)
Kaspari, M., N. A. Clay, D. Donoso, and S. P. Yanoviak. 2014. Sodium fertilization increases termites and enhances decomposition in an Amazonian forest. Ecology 95: 795-800. pdf
Dudley, R., M. Kaspari and S. P. Yanoviak. 2012. Lust for salt in the western Amazon. Biotropica 44: 6-9. pdf
Kaspari, M., S. P. Yanoviak, R. Dudley, M. Yuan, and N. Clay. 2009. Sodium shortage as a constraint on the carbon cycle in an inland tropical rainforest. PNAS 106: 19405-19409. pdf
Kaspari, M., S. P. Yanoviak, and R. Dudley. 2008. On the biogeography of salt limitation: a study of ant communities. PNAS 105: 17848-17851. pdf
PHYTOTELMATA & VECTOR ECOLOGY
Yanoviak, S. P. and O. M. Fincke. The ecology of water-filled treeholes in a tropical forest. Pages xx-xx in: Barro Colorado: the First 100 Years. Smithsonian Contributions to Biology. H. Muller-Landau, R. Page, S. J. Wright, W. Wcislo, and R. Stallard, eds. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C. DOI:
Barker, H. S., J. W. Snyder, A. B. Hicks, S. P. Yanoviak, P. Southern, B. K. Dhakal, G. R. Ghimire, and M. R. Couturier. 2014. First case reports of Ignatzschineria (Schineria) indica associated with myiasis. Journal of Clinical Microbiology 52: 4432-4434. pdf
Mirabello, L., J. H. Vineis, S. P. Yanoviak, V. M. Scarpassa, M. M. Povoa, N. Padilla, J. P. Grieco, and J. E. Conn. 2008. Microsatellite data suggest significant population structure and differentiation within the malaria vector Anopheles darlingi in Central and South America. BMC Ecology 8:3. pdf
Ramirez, J. E., S. P. Yanoviak, L. P. Lounibos, and S. C. Weaver. 2007. Distribucion vertical de Haemagogus janthinomys (Dyar) (Diptera: Culicidae) en bosques de la Amazonia Peruana. Revista peruana de Medicina Experimental y Salud Publica 24: 40-45. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., L. P. Lounibos, and S. C. Weaver. 2006. Land use affects macroinvertebrate community composition in phytotelmata in the Peruvian Amazon. Annals of the Entomological Society of America 99: 1172-1181. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., J. E. Ramirez P., L. P. Lounibos, and S. C. Weaver. 2006. Deforestation alters phytotelm habitat availability and mosquito production in the Peruvian Amazon. Ecological Applications 16: 1854-1864. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., P. V. Aguilar, L. P. Lounibos, and S. C. Weaver. 2005. Transmission of a Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) complex alphavirus by Culex (Melanoconion) gnomatos (Diptera: Culicidae) in northeastern Peru. Journal of Medical Entomology 42: 404-408. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. and O. M. Fincke. 2005. Sampling methods for water-filled tree holes and their analogs. In: S. Leather (ed.). Insect sampling in forest ecosystems. Blackwell Science, London, pp. 168-185. pdf
Alto, B. W., S. P. Yanoviak, L. P. Lounibos, and B. G. Drake. 2005. Effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 on water chemistry and mosquito (Diptera: Culicidae) growth under competitive conditions in container habitats. Florida Entomologist 88: 372-382. pdf
Aguilar, P., I. Greene, L. Coffey, et al. 2004. Endemic Venezuelan equine encephalitis in northern Peru. Emerging Infectious Diseases 10: 880-888. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. 2001. The macrofauna of water-filled tree holes on Barro Colorado Island, Panama. Biotropica 33: 110-120. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. 2001. Predation, resource availability, and community structure in Neotropical water-filled tree holes. Oecologia 126: 125-133. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. 2001. Container color and location affect macroinvertebrate community structure in artificial treeholes in Panama. Florida Entomologist 84: 265-271. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. 1999. Effects of Mecistogaster spp. (Odonata: Pseudostigmatidae) and Culex mollis (Diptera: Culicidae) on litter decomposition in neotropical treehole microcosms. Florida Entomologist 82: 462-468. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. 1999. Effects of leaf litter species on macroinvertebrate community properties and mosquito yield in Neotropical tree holes. Oecologia 120: 147-155. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. 1999. Distribution and abundance of Microvelia cavicola Polhemus (Heteroptera: Veliidae) on Barro Colorado Island, Panama. Journal of the New York Entomological Society 107: 38-45. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. 1999. Community structure in water-filled tree holes of Panama: effects of hole height and size. Selbyana 20: 106-115. pdf
Fincke, O. M., S. P. Yanoviak and R. Hanschu. 1997. Predation by odonates depresses mosquito abundance in water-filled tree holes in Panama. Oecologia 112: 244-253. pdf
Fincke, O. M. and S. P. Yanoviak. 1996. (conference abstract) Consequences of obligate killing on the population dynamics of odonates and their mosquito prey in tropical tree holes. Proceedings of the 20th International Congress on Entomology, Firenze, Italy. p. 337.
Yanoviak, S. P. and G. W. Folkerts. 1991. (conference abstract) Sarcophagid flies associated with pitcher plants (Sarracenia spp.) in the central Gulf Region. J. Alabama Acad. Sci. 62: 80.
CLOUD FOREST ARTHROPOD ECOLOGY
Yanoviak, S. P., N. M. Nadkarni, and R. Solano J. 2007. Arthropod assemblages in epiphyte mats of Costa Rican cloud forests. Biotropica 36: 202-210. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., H. Walker, and N. M. Nadkarni. 2004. Arthropod assemblages in vegetative vs. humic portions of epiphyte mats in a neotropical cloud forest. Pedobiologia 48: 51-58. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., G. Kragh and N. M. Nadkarni. 2003. Spider assemblages in Costa Rican cloud forests: effects of forest level and forest age. Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environment 38: 145-154. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P., N. M. Nadkarni and J. C. Gering. 2003. Arthropods in epiphytes: a diversity component that is not effectively sampled by canopy fogging. Biodiversity and Conservation 12: 731-741. pdf
Yanoviak, S. P. and N. M. Nadkarni. 2001. (project summary) Arthropod diversity in epiphytic bryophytes of a Neotropical cloud forest. Pages 416-419 in: Tropical ecosystems: structure, diversity and human welfare. Proceedings of the International Conference on Tropical Ecosystems. Oxford-IBH, New Delhi.
Canopy Arthropod Biology 