Predators of
Solenopsis invicta1
Queens Prior to Successful Colony Establishment
23

Whitcomb, W. H.; Bhatkar, A. P.; Nickerson, J. C.

doi:10.1093/ee/2.6.1101

Cited by 60 publications

(34 citation statements)

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“…As the queens settle to the ground, "a further fraction is taken by ground-based predators, especially other ants" (6). When predators are abundant, as few as five percent of the queens succeed in building a nest (51). Similar mortality rates have been observed in the mating swarms of other ant species with large mature colonies, including representatives of the genera Atta, Pheidole, and Pogonomyrmex (2, 52).…”

Section: Monogamy and Origin Of Eusocialitysupporting

confidence: 55%

Natural selection drives the evolution of ant life cycles

Wilson

Nowak

2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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The genetic origin of advanced social organization has long been one of the outstanding problems of evolutionary biology. Here we present an analysis of the major steps in ant evolution, based for the first time, to our knowledge, on combined recent advances in paleontology, phylogeny, and the study of contemporary life histories. We provide evidence of the causal forces of natural selection shaping several key phenomena: (i) the relative lateness and rarity in geological time of the emergence of eusociality in ants and other animal phylads; (ii) the prevalence of monogamy at the time of evolutionary origin; and (iii) the female-biased sex allocation observed in many ant species. We argue that a clear understanding of the evolution of social insects can emerge if, in addition to relatedness-based arguments, we take into account key factors of natural history and study how natural selection acts on alleles that modify social behavior.sociobiology | claustrality | adaptive radiation | inadequacy of inclusive fitness

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Section: Monogamy and Origin Of Eusocialitysupporting

confidence: 55%

Natural selection drives the evolution of ant life cycles

Wilson

Nowak

2014

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Although rare in the prey records at swarms, the potentially longer-lived female F. subpolita may suffer high predation rates elsewhere, while searching for nest sites and excavating nests, and even during the early phases of the colony life cycle. Whitcomb et al (1973) …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Male Mating Strategy of the Ant Formica Subpolita Mayr(Hymenoptera: Formicidae): Swarming, Mating, and Predation Risk

O'neill

1994

Psyche: A Journal of Entomology

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All-male mating swarms of the ant Formica subpolita were observed at the same site, and sometimes on the same plants, for six consecutive years (1988)(1989)(1990)(1991)(1992)(1993) in southwestern Montana. The swarms, sometimes numbering thousands of males, occurred above and within shrubs and clumps of tall grasses. Mating occurred on the plant surface below the swarms and lasted for 62 s on average. Females controlled who they mated with and were observed to mate with up to 4 different males, before dispersing from swarm sites. I obtained --900 records of predation on F. subpolita at swarms. Twenty-one species of predator were observed, the foremost of which were the robber fly Efferia staminea and the spider Dictyna coloradensis. With the exception of prey of the digger wasp Aphilanthops subfrigidus, which prey only on females, prey records were overwhelmingly male-biased. Results are compared to observations on other species of ants, especially those in the genus Pogonomyrmex.

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“…Queens, in particular, which found new colonies after mating, contain abdominal reserves of fats, proteins and glycogen that constitute up to 70% of their body weight [4][5]. As dense aggregations of nutritious prey, ant mating flights thus present attractive targets for predators [6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are invasive fire ants kept in check by native aerial insectivores?

et al. 2016

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Aerial predator–prey interactions may impact populations of many terrestrial species. Here, we use altitude loggers to study aerial foraging in a native insectivore, the purple martin ( Progne subis ), in the southern USA. Purple martins fed primarily on mating queens and males of the invasive red imported fire ant ( Solenopsis invicta ), and doubled their foraging efficiency by doing so. Across the USA, purple martins likely eat billions of fire ant queens each year, potentially impacting the spread of this species. Alternatively, predation on fire ants may help sustain populations of purple martins and other aerial insectivores.

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Predators of Solenopsis invicta1 Queens Prior to Successful Colony Establishment 23

Cited by 60 publications

References 0 publications

Natural selection drives the evolution of ant life cycles

Natural selection drives the evolution of ant life cycles

The Male Mating Strategy of the Ant Formica Subpolita Mayr(Hymenoptera: Formicidae): Swarming, Mating, and Predation Risk

Are invasive fire ants kept in check by native aerial insectivores?

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