Editing Cecropia (section)

==Ecology==
[[File:Young Cecropia.jpg|thumb|left|220px|Young ''Cecropia'' sp., [[Kourou]], [[French Guiana]]]]

''Cecropia'' species are used as food plants by the [[larva]]e of some [[Lepidoptera]] species, including the [[Arctiinae (moth)|arctiid moth]] ''Hypercompe icasia''; the [[Cecropia moth]] (''Hyalophora cecropia'') is a [[North America]]n species, however,  thus [[allopatric]] with the plant genus. The leaves and buds are also eaten by [[sloth]]s as their main source of food,<ref name= "BI"/> but many [[herbivore]]s avoid these plants; most ''Cecropia'' spp. are [[myrmecophyte]]s, housing [[Dolichoderinae|dolichoderine ants]] of the genus ''Azteca'', which vigorously defend their host plants against getting eaten. This [[symbiosis]] has been studied extensively by [[biologist]]s such as [[Daniel Janzen]].

''Cecropia'' fruit, known as '''snake fingers''', are a popular food of diverse animals, including [[bat]]s like the [[Artibeus jamaicensis|common fruit bat]] (''Artibeus jamaicensis'') and ''[[Carollia|short-tailed fruit bat]]'', the [[Central American squirrel monkey]] (''Saimiri oerstedii''), and [[bird]]s such as the [[green aracari]] (''Pteroglossus viridis''), the [[keel-billed toucan]] (''Ramphastos sulfuratus''), the [[peach-fronted conure]] (''Eupsittula aurea''), the [[bare-throated bellbird]] (''Procnias nudicollis'')<ref>Frisch & Frisch (2005), pg.358</ref> and particularly [[nine-primaried oscine]]s. The seeds are not normally [[digestion|digested]], so these animals are important in distributing the trees.
Some birds &ndash; e.g. the [[common potoo]] (''Nyctibius griseus'') &ndash; nest in ''Cecropia'' trees. The [[elfin-woods warbler]] (''Setophaga angelae'') is notable for using ''Cecropia'' leaves as nesting material, which no other [[New World warbler]] (family Parulidae) seems to do.

===Pioneer species===
''Cecropia'' is a major pioneer tree genus in regions of the Neotropics with wet lowland and montane forest.<ref name="BRD"/> These trees are characteristic features of many American [[tropical rainforest]] ecosystems and may be among the dominant tree species in some places. Being aggressive, rapid-growth trees, whose [[succulent]] fruits are readily sought by various animals, they tend to be among the first [[pioneer species]] to occupy former forest areas cleared for pasture or altered by human activity.<ref name= "BI">Backes & Irgang (2004), pg.168</ref> ''C. hololeuca'', known in Brazil as "silver cecropia", has broad, silver-hued leaves that make it desirable as an ornamental plant for [[landscaping]] projects, as is the case with the similar species ''C. pachystachya''.<ref>Backes & Irgang (2004), pgs.170 & 171</ref> Greenhouse experiments have been performed with some species of ''Cecropia'' indicating them as “gap” and “pioneer” species under different light regimens and nutrient treatments.<ref name="BRD"/> Some species (''C. maxima'', ''C. tacuna'', ''C. telealba'', and ''C. telenitida'') do not show the traits of pioneer species, though, as they occur evenly in the forest.<ref name="BRD"/> The pioneer ''Cecropia'' species have a higher demand for light, occur in open habitats, relatively rapid growth rates, and short-lived leaves.<ref name="BRD"/> According to McKey's theory, these pioneer species tend to invest more heavily in pearl bodies and less heavily in Mullerian bodies than more shade-tolerant species with slower intrinsic growth rates and longer leaf lifespans.<ref name="BRD"/> In the small light gaps (which are more shaded than normal), the most distinctive myrmecophytic ''Cecropia'' spp, are found.<ref name="BRD"/>

===Myrmecophytism===
Species of ''Cecropia'' often display myrmecophytism as a form of biotic defense. D.W. Davidson said,
:“In all the world, the genus ''Cecropia'' is unrivaled for the number of myrmecophytes, or true “ant-plants” counted among its species. Based on the proportion of ''Cecropia'' species producing [[Mullerian body|Mullerian bodies]] in at least some parts of their distribution, myrmecophytes comprise the vast majority (80%) of species in the genus; most nonmyrmecophytes occur at higher elevations and on islands, where their ants are missing.” (Berg, Rosselli and Davidson, 2005: page 214) <ref name="BRD"/>

Myrmecophytism is a mutualistic relationship formed with ant colonies, where the ants protect the tree from herbivory and the trees provide shelter and food for the ants. Along with protection against herbivory, the ants also prevent the ''Cecropia'' from encroaching vines and other plants. This may vary between or within species and over geographical locations. The main ants found living in ''Cecropia'' are different species of ''[[Azteca (ant)|Azteca]]'' ants, although all ants belong to the same family, the Formicidae.<ref name= "CCR">Longino (2011)</ref> The genus ''Azteca'' is endemic to the New World and its greatest abundance is in the lowland tropics. In the article written by Davidson, 2005 <ref name="BRD"/> on page 221, Table 1 contains known obligate Cecropia-ants listed by species and geographic distribution. Ants and ''Cecropia'' have coadapted to each other, meaning that each species has evolved one or more traits in response to selective pressures exerted by the other. An example is the recognition and use of both [[prostomata]] and Mullerian bodies by queens and worker ants.<ref name="BRD"/>