Behavioral ecology of the neotropical termite-hunting ant Pachycondyla (=?Termitopone) marginata: colony founding, group-raiding and migratory patterns

Leal, Inara R.; Oliveira, Priscila Souza de

doi:10.1007/s002650050204

Cited by 24 publications

(24 citation statements)

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“…Residence time of ant colonies can be associated with biotic and abiotic factors such as competition, natural enemies, prey availability, environmental fluctuations, or even nest type (e.g. Leal & Oliveira, ; Blüthgen & Feldhaar, ; McGlynn, ; Moyano & Feener, ). Ant species that have simple or fragile nests, which require a low investment to construct, tend to relocate their colonies more frequently than species with more complex nests (Hölldobler & Wilson, ; McGlynn, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Three ways to distinguish species: using behavioural, ecological, and molecular data to tell apart two closely related ants,Camponotus renggeriandCamponotus rufipes(Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

et al. 2015

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The closely related Camponotus renggeri and Camponotus rufipes (subgenus Myrmothrix) often live in sympatry in the Brazilian 'cerrado' savannah, and are distinguished by nuances in their blackish body colour and by the colour of the legs. Variation in morphological characters, however, makes species separation difficult and it has been suggested that the two species should be merged into one. As appropriate species identification is essential for studies in ecology and evolutionary biology, here we examine how natural history data (habitat preference, nesting biology) and molecular tools (nuclear and mitochondrial markers) perform in distinguishing sympatric populations of C. renggeri and C. rufipes. In our study area, C. rufipes was only seen in cerrado sensu stricto (scrub of shrubs and trees), whereas C. renggeri occurred in cerrado sensu stricto and cerradão (closed woodland). Camponotus renggeri nested underground or in fallen/erect dead trunks, whereas C. rufipes constructed distinctive nests of dry straw. Nest persistence through time was higher in C. rufipes, especially in the hot/rainy season. Nest distribution was random in C. renggeri and aggregated in C. rufipes. Molecular data consistently showed that, regardless of the source of genetic variation, the uppermost hierarchical level of divergence is observed between species, unambiguously differentiating the individuals identified as C. renggeri and C. rufipes as two independent evolutionary lineages. Mitochondrial data throughout the species' geographical ranges further confirmed a consistent genetic divergence between C. renggeri and C. rufipes along their distribution in Brazil. Our integrated approach combining morphological traits with natural history and molecular data confirms that C. renggeri and C. rufipes are valid species that can be separated in our study area relatively well.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Three ways to distinguish species: using behavioural, ecological, and molecular data to tell apart two closely related ants,Camponotus renggeriandCamponotus rufipes(Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

et al. 2015

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“…While most ponerines are generalist predators, many specialize on one prey type (e.g., termites-Pachycondyla marginata, millipedes-Thaumatomyrmex spp., or isopods-Leptogenys spp.) (Peeters & Crewe 1987, H€ olldobler & Wilson 1990, Brandão et al 1991, Leal & Oliveira 1995, Dejean & Evraerts 1997. Similarly, members of this subfamily vary substantially in colony size and foraging strategy; some species have large colonies (> 50,000 workers) that exhibit army ant-like foraging behaviors, while others have colonies of less than 20 individuals and are solitary foragers (Peeters & Crewe 1987, Maschwitz et al 1989, Brandão et al 1991, Paiva & Brandão 1995.…”

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confidence: 99%

Foraging Ecology of the Tropical Giant Hunting Ant Dinoponera australis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)—Evaluating Mechanisms for High Abundance

et al. 2014

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A central goal of ecology is to understand the mechanisms behind variation in the abundance of species. Food web theory predicts higher biomass for animals at lower trophic levels. However, some high trophic level species may reach great abundance via highly efficient foraging behaviors. We evaluated ecological and behavioral traits of the giant tropical ant Dinoponera australis related to these mechanisms. We determined its distribution and abundance, documented its foraging behavior, and measured its trophic position in a population at P.N. Iguazú, Argentina. We report that D. australis colonies are overdispersed, and the species reaches a wet biomass of more than 2.5 kg/ha at this site. Dinoponera australis foraging behavior is characterized by route fidelity of individual workers, with different individuals specializing on different areas around the nest. Finally, stable isotopic evidence and direct observation suggest these ants are among the top predators in this terrestrial invertebrate community. We interpret our findings in the context of how the behavior of an abundant top predator creates an exception to the usual trade‐off between biomass and trophic level. Together these data provide insight into the biology of one of the world's largest ants and why they may be able to attain such high densities where they occur.

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“…In theory, this investment greatly increases propagule success but inevitably limits their number. However, until recently, colony fission has not been studied in depth, and data on propagule size and number are only available for a handful of species (Briese 1983;Lenoir et al 1988;Bolton and Marsh 1989;Leal and Oliveira 1995;Fernández-Escudero et al 2001).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The evolution of worker–queen polymorphism in Cataglyphis ants: interplay between individual- and colony-level selections

Amor

Ortega

Jowers

et al. 2011

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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In many ants, young queens disperse by flying away from their natal nest and found new colonies alone (independent colony founding, ICF). Alternatively, in some species, ICF was replaced by colony fission, in which young queens accompanied by workers found a new colony at walking distance from the mother nest. We compared the queen morphology of Cataglyphis floricola, which disperses by fission, with that of its most likely living ancestor, Cataglyphis emmae, which disperses by ICF. As in other species, the transition from ICF to fission is associated with queen miniaturization. Interestingly, C. floricola presents two types of small queens: brachypters (with short nonfunctional wings) and ergatoids (worker-like apterous queens). Ergatoids are, on average, 2.8 mg lighter and have half the number of ovarioles than brachypters, which limits the advantage for a colony to produce ergatoids instead of brachypters. Furthermore, more ergatoids are produced than brachypters, but their individual survival rate is lower. During colony fission, 96% of the cocoons containing brachypters but only 31% of those containing ergatoids are transferred to the daughter nests where, after emergence, they compete for becoming the next queen. The remaining queen cocoons, which stay in the mother queen's nest, are eliminated by workers upon emergence, probably to maintain monogyny. This waste of energy suggests that producing ergatoids instead of brachypters is unlikely to increase colony efficiency. We argue that the evolution of ergatoids could derive from a selfish larval strategy, developing into worker-like queens in spite of the colony interest.

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Behavioral ecology of the neotropical termite-hunting ant Pachycondyla (=?Termitopone) marginata: colony founding, group-raiding and migratory patterns

Cited by 24 publications

References 0 publications

Three ways to distinguish species: using behavioural, ecological, and molecular data to tell apart two closely related ants,Camponotus renggeriandCamponotus rufipes(Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Three ways to distinguish species: using behavioural, ecological, and molecular data to tell apart two closely related ants,Camponotus renggeriandCamponotus rufipes(Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Foraging Ecology of the Tropical Giant Hunting Ant Dinoponera australis (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)—Evaluating Mechanisms for High Abundance

The evolution of worker–queen polymorphism in Cataglyphis ants: interplay between individual- and colony-level selections

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