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The role of ants in primary vegetation succession is well-known. Ants bring into extreme habitat organic compounds and dispers seeds. However, there is a gap in the knowledge which factors influnce motivation of ants to disperse seeds. One of may hypotheses could be the existence of relationship between myrmecochory and trophic interaction of ants with EFN or aphids. Goal of the bachelor theses is to describe some factors, which could be important for research of relationship between myrmecochory and trophic interaction.

The topic of the presented bachelor thesis is the determination of the ants g. Formica preference for specific seeds with elaiosomes. The ant dispersion of the seeds with elaiosomes is called myrmecochory. The theoretical part of this thesis describes the myrmecochory phenomenon in the context of the seed dispersal. The conclusion of the theoretical part evaluates considerable benefit of myrmecochory for ants and plants despite its disadvantages. The practical part of this thesis describes the experiment held with the intention to determine the preferences of the ants. The seeds with elaiosomes from five experimental plants were presented to the ants from two experimental anthills. Obtained data were processed into tables and graphs and subsequently evaluated. The results show that the ants prefer certain types of seeds. The cause for this preference is discussed.

Various aspects of myrmecochory were investigated. Effect of different storage methods on atractiveness of seeds with elaiosomes for ants was examined. Viable seed bank of refuse piles (places where ants deposit unused objects from ant nests, e.g. seeds after the elaiosome was eaten) and places outside them were compared. Chemical content of five major chemical groups, specifically amino acids, free fatty acids, organic acids, polyols and sugars, of elaiosomes and seeds of selected species was determined, and compared with respect to their taxonomic relatedness.

Seed dispersal by ants was investigated in a wet meadow. Vegetation and viable seed bank of places with and without ant-hill were compared. The response of ants to the presence of elaiosom on seeds of myrmecochorous plant Pedicularis sylvatica was observed.

All potential myrmecochorous plants of the Czech Republic have been detected from different published sources. My study aims to describe common traits of myrmecochorous plants of the Czech flora. One of myrmecochores, lousewort (Pedicularis sylvatica), was chosen for the purpose of finding peaks in seed removal by a Myrmica scabrinodis ant species during a day and year

Abandoned industrial-waste deposits (incl. fly ash or tailings ponds) represent very specific and mostly extreme habitat conditions. They offer unique opportunity to study primary succession in cultural landscape. Substrate of the material deposited here shows extreme properties, such as low pH, overheating of the open surface, salinization etc. The aim of this work is to map the colonization of different successional stages of vegetation by ants after years of abandonment of ore-waste deposits in Chvaletice (Eastern Bohemia, CR) and to compare the present state with analogous study made in 2001. Particular aims of both studies (Jarešová 2001, and present study, 2011-12) is to test the influence of ants on vegetation succession. During the years 2011-2012 several prospections were made to record species diversity of ants. On the surface plateau of the sedimentation basin two types of habitats were chosen - the areas with present ant nests and the other areas without them. Each of both types of habitats exhibits different plant species richness: separately the species-area curves were constructed and explained. Three dominant ant species of different size categories present on sedimentation basin were selected for experimental offering of plant seeds, Formica pratensis, Lasius niger, Tetramorium...