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García Ibarra F, Jouquet P, Bottinelli N, Bultelle A, Monnin T. Experimental evidence that increased surface temperature affects bioturbation by ants. J Anim Ecol 2024; 93:319-332. [PMID: 38155266 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 12/30/2023]
Abstract
Ants are important bioturbators that actively produce biopores and move soil particles. They could be particularly affected by global warming as they are ectotherms. Nevertheless, they can indirectly regulate their temperature, through changes in their circadian cycles and the architecture of their nests (e.g. digging deep nests or using insulating materials). Nest architecture has been considered an expanded functional trait of ant colonies and thus sensitive to environmental changes such as increasing temperatures. This work aimed to study the nest architecture of ants as a functional trait and its effects on soil bioturbation. We hypothesized that, when exposed to increased surface temperatures, ants would increase their excavation activities, build deeper nests and alter the layout of chambers to maintain their preferred temperature and humidity, thus enhancing soil porosity. We allowed 17 young Lasius niger ant colonies to excavate nests in soil columns exposed to three surface temperatures (mild, n = 5; medium, n = 6; and high, n = 6) for 100 days. We measured the amount of soil excavated weekly and took X-ray scans of the soil column on Days 7, 14, 28, and 88 to characterize the three-dimensional structure of the nests (depth, shape, volume of chambers and tunnels). We then collected the colonies and measured their growth during the experiment, and the size and weight of workers. Ants reacted to surface temperature. Colonies exposed to medium and high temperatures excavated larger and deeper nests than those exposed to mild temperature. Nests excavated under high and medium temperatures had the same maximal depth, but chambers were located deeper in the former, which were further characterized by the refiling of some of the upper chambers. Colonies grew well in all treatments, although less under mild temperature. They produced normal-sized workers despite differences in surface temperature. Overall, these results suggest that ants exposed to higher temperatures live in deeper chambers. This study shows that surface temperature affects ant nest architecture, confirming its status as extended phenotype and highlighting its flexibility over time, which has in turn consequences on soil porosity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fátima García Ibarra
- Institut d'Ecologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris (UMR7618), Sorbonne Université, Université Paris Cité, Université Paris Est Créteil, CNRS, INRAE, IRD, Paris, France
| | - Pascal Jouquet
- Institut d'Ecologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris (UMR7618), Sorbonne Université, Université Paris Cité, Université Paris Est Créteil, CNRS, INRAE, IRD, Paris, France
- Institut de Technologie du Cambodge, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
| | - Nicolas Bottinelli
- Institut d'Ecologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris (UMR7618), Sorbonne Université, Université Paris Cité, Université Paris Est Créteil, CNRS, INRAE, IRD, Paris, France
- Department of Soil Sciences, Soils and Fertilizers Research Institute (SFRI), Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Angélique Bultelle
- Institut d'Ecologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris (UMR7618), Sorbonne Université, Université Paris Cité, Université Paris Est Créteil, CNRS, INRAE, IRD, Paris, France
| | - Thibaud Monnin
- Institut d'Ecologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris (UMR7618), Sorbonne Université, Université Paris Cité, Université Paris Est Créteil, CNRS, INRAE, IRD, Paris, France
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Shelomi M, Meiri S. A practical guide to collections-based research on ecogeographic rules. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e10211. [PMID: 37332523 PMCID: PMC10276348 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2023] [Accepted: 06/06/2023] [Indexed: 06/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Ecogeographic research into how species' forms vary across space, time, and climate has taken on new urgency due to contemporary global climate change. Research using museum specimens and other records to study biological rules like Bergmann's, Allen's, and Gloger's Rules has a long history and continues to generate publications and robust scientific debates. Despite the prevalence and history of the field, however, no simple guide on how to carry out such work has ever been published. To lower the barriers of entry for new researchers, this review was created as a practical guide on how to perform ecogeographic research. The guide consolidates disparately published methodologies into a single, convenient document that reviews the history and present of the field of ecogeographic rule research, and describes how to generate appropriate hypotheses, design experiments, gather, and analyze biotic and geographic data, and interpret the results in an ecologically meaningful manner. The result is a semi-standardized guide that enables scientists at all levels from any institution to carry out an investigation from start to finish on any biological rule, taxon, and location of their choice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matan Shelomi
- Department of EntomologyNational Taiwan UniversityTaipeiTaiwan
| | - Shai Meiri
- School of Zoology & The Steinhardt Museum of Natural HistoryTel Aviv UniversityTel AvivIsrael
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Roeder DV, Remy S, Roeder KA. Temperature influences lipid content in the red harvester ant, Pogonomyrmex barbatus. JOURNAL OF INSECT SCIENCE (ONLINE) 2023; 23:7193723. [PMID: 37300537 DOI: 10.1093/jisesa/iead040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2023] [Revised: 04/13/2023] [Accepted: 05/30/2023] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Temperature is one of the most important environmental conditions affecting physiological processes in ectothermic organisms like ants. Yet, we often lack information on how certain physiological traits covary with temperature across time. Here, we test predictions on how one trait-lipid content-covaries with temperature using a conspicuous, ground-dwelling harvester ant. We focus on lipid content as fat bodies are metabolically active tissues that are important for storing and releasing energy in response to demand, which could be vital for survival under variable temperatures. From March to November, we extracted lipids from surface workers of 14 colonies while simultaneously recording ground temperature. We first assessed if lipid content was highest during cooler temperatures when ants were less active and less metabolically stressed. In doing so, we found that lipid content of ants declined almost 70% from cool months (November lipid content = 14.6%) to hot months (August lipid content = 4.6%). We next assessed if lipid levels from a group of ants collected at a single time point could change by placing individuals into environmental chambers set at 10, 20, and 30°C (i.e., the approximate span of average temperatures from March to November). Temperature again had a significant impact such that after 10 days, lipid content of ants in the hottest chamber (30°C) had decreased by more than 75%. While intraspecific variation in physiological traits often follows seasonal patterns, our results suggest fluctuations in temperature may account for a portion of the variance observed in traits like lipid content.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diane V Roeder
- Department of Natural Resource Management, South Dakota State University, Brookings, SD 57006, USA
| | - Samantha Remy
- Department of Agriculture, Biology and Health Sciences, Cameron University, Lawton, OK 73505, USA
| | - Karl A Roeder
- Agricultural Research Service, North Central Agricultural Research Laboratory, USDA, Brookings, SD 57006, USA
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Feitosa RM, Camacho GP, Silva TSR, Ulysséa MA, Ladino N, Oliveira AM, Albuquerque EZ, Schmidt FA, Ribas CR, Nogueira A, Baccaro FB, Queiroz ACM, Dáttilo W, Silva RR, Santos JC, Rabello AM, Morini MSDC, Quinet YP, Del-Claro K, Harada AY, Carvalho KS, Sobrinho TG, Moraes AB, Vargas AB, Torezan-Silingardi HM, Souza JLP, Marques T, Izzo T, Lange D, Santos IA, Nahas L, Paolucci L, Soares SA, Costa-Milanez CB, Diehl-Fleig E, Campos RBF, Solar R, Frizzo T, Darocha W. Ants of Brazil: an overview based on 50 years of diversity studies. SYST BIODIVERS 2022. [DOI: 10.1080/14772000.2022.2089268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Rodrigo M. Feitosa
- Laboratório de Sistemática e Biologia de Formigas, Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
| | - Gabriela P. Camacho
- Center for Integrative Biodiversity Discovery, Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin, Germany
- Laboratório de Hymenoptera, Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Thiago S. R. Silva
- The Insect Biodiversity and Biogeography Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Mônica A. Ulysséa
- Laboratório de Hymenoptera, Museu de Zoologia da Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Natalia Ladino
- Laboratório de Sistemática e Biologia de Formigas, Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
| | - Aline M. Oliveira
- The Insect Biodiversity and Biogeography Laboratory, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Emília Z. Albuquerque
- AntLab, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA
- Rabeling Lab, School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Fernando A. Schmidt
- Laboratório de Ecologia de Formigas, Centro de Ciências Biológicas e da Natureza, Universidade Federal do Acre, Rio Branco, Acre, Brazil
| | - Carla R. Ribas
- Laboratório de Ecologia de Formigas, Departamento de Ecologia e Conservação, Universidade Federal de Lavras, Lavras, Minas Gerais, Brazil
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
| | - Anselmo Nogueira
- Laboratório de Interações Planta-Animal, Centro de Ciências Naturais e Humanas, Universidade Federal do ABC, São Bernardo do Campo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Fabrício B. Baccaro
- Departamento de Biologia, Universidade Federal do Amazonas, Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil
| | - Antônio C. M. Queiroz
- Laboratório de Ecologia de Formigas, Departamento de Ecologia e Conservação, Universidade Federal de Lavras, Lavras, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Wesley Dáttilo
- Red de Ecoetología, Instituto de Ecología AC, Xalapa, Veracruz, Mexico
| | - Rogério R. Silva
- Coordenação de Ciências da Terra e Ecologia, Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi, Belém, Pará, Brazil
| | - Jean C. Santos
- Laboratório de Ecologia & Biodiversidade, Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade Federal de Sergipe, São Cristóvão, Sergipe, Brazil
| | - Ananza M. Rabello
- Instituto de Estudos do Xingu, Universidade Federal do Sul e Sudeste do Pará, São Félix do Xingu, Pará, Brazil
| | - Maria Santina De C. Morini
- Laboratório de Mirmecologia do Alto Tietê, Núcleo de Ciências Ambientais, Universidade de Mogi das Cruzes, Mogi das Cruzes, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Yves P. Quinet
- Laboratório de Entomologia, Departamento de Biologia, Universidade Estadual do Ceará, Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil
| | - Kleber Del-Claro
- Laboratório de Ecologia Comportamental e de Interações, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Ana Y. Harada
- Coordenação em Zoologia, Museu Paraense Emilio Goeldi, Belém, Pará, Brazil
| | - Karine S. Carvalho
- Laboratório de Ecologia, Departamento de Ciências Naturais, Universidade Estadual do Sudoeste da Bahia, Vitória da Conquista, Bahia, Brazil
| | - Tathiana G. Sobrinho
- Laboratório de Sistemática e Ecologia de Insetos, Departamento de Ciências Agrárias e Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, São Mateus, Espírito Santos, Brazil
| | - Aline B. Moraes
- Prefeitura Municipal de Novo Hamburgo, Novo Hamburgo, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - André B. Vargas
- Centro Universitário de Volta Redonda, UniFOA, Volta Redonda, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Helena Maura Torezan-Silingardi
- Laboratório de Ecologia Comportamental e de Interações, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Jorge Luiz P. Souza
- Instituto Nacional da Mata Atlântica, INMA, Santa Teresa, Espírito Santo, Brazil
| | - Tatianne Marques
- Laboratório de Ecologia Aplicada e Citogenética, Instituto Federal do Norte de Minas Gerais – IFNMG, Salinas, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Thiago Izzo
- Laboratório de Ecologia de Comunidades, Departamento de Botânica e Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Mato Grosso, Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Brazil
| | - Denise Lange
- Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Santa Helena, Paraná, Brazil
| | - Iracenir A. Santos
- Centro de Formação Interdisciplinar, Universidade Federal do Oeste do Pará, Santarém, Pará, Brazil
| | - Larissa Nahas
- Laboratório de Ecologia Comportamental e de Interações, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal de Uberlândia, Uberlândia, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Lucas Paolucci
- Departamento de Biologia Geral, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Stela A. Soares
- Secretaria Estadual de Educação de Mato Grosso do Sul, Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
| | - Cinthia B. Costa-Milanez
- Departamento de Biologia, Instituto de Ciências Exatas e Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Ouro Preto, Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | | | - Renata B. F. Campos
- Laboratório de Ecologia, Ambiente e Território, PPG Gestão Integrada do Território, Universidade Vale do Rio Doce, Governador Valadares, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Ricardo Solar
- Centro de Síntese Ecológica e Conservação, Departamento de Genética, Ecologia e Evolução, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Tiago Frizzo
- Departamento de Ecologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brazil
| | - Wesley Darocha
- Laboratório de Mirmecologia (CPDC), Centro de Pesquisa do Cacau (CEPEC), Ilhéus, Bahia, Brazil
- Laboratório de Ecologia de Insetos, Departamento de Biologia Geral, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
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Abstract
Knowledge on the distribution and abundance of organisms is fundamental to understanding their roles within ecosystems and their ecological importance for other taxa. Such knowledge is currently lacking for insects, which have long been regarded as the "little things that run the world". Even for ubiquitous insects, such as ants, which are of tremendous ecological significance, there is currently neither a reliable estimate of their total number on Earth nor of their abundance in particular biomes or habitats. We compile data on ground-dwelling and arboreal ants to obtain an empirical estimate of global ant abundance. Our analysis is based on 489 studies, spanning all continents, major biomes, and habitats. We conservatively estimate total abundance of ground-dwelling ants at over 3 × 1015 and estimate the number of all ants on Earth to be almost 20 × 1015 individuals. The latter corresponds to a biomass of ∼12 megatons of dry carbon. This exceeds the combined biomass of wild birds and mammals and is equivalent to ∼20% of human biomass. Abundances of ground-dwelling ants are strongly concentrated in tropical and subtropical regions but vary substantially across habitats. The density of leaf-litter ants is highest in forests, while the numbers of actively ground-foraging ants are highest in arid regions. This study highlights the central role ants play in terrestrial ecosystems but also major ecological and geographic gaps in our current knowledge. Our results provide a crucial baseline for exploring environmental drivers of ant-abundance patterns and for tracking the responses of insects to environmental change.
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Luzyanin S, Blinova S. Formation of Ant (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) Communities on Rock Dumps of an Open-Pit Coal Mine in SW Siberia. ANN ZOOL FENN 2022. [DOI: 10.5735/086.059.0111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sergey Luzyanin
- Department of Ecology and Nature Management, Kemerovo State University, 6 Krasnay st., RU-650000 Kemerovo, Russia
| | - Svetlana Blinova
- Department of Ecology and Nature Management, Kemerovo State University, 6 Krasnay st., RU-650000 Kemerovo, Russia
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Osorio-Canadas S, Flores-Hernández N, Sánchez-Ortiz T, Valiente-Banuet A. Changes in the structure and composition of the 'Mexical' scrubland bee community along an elevational gradient. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0254072. [PMID: 34197555 PMCID: PMC8248643 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0254072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2020] [Accepted: 06/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
'Mexical' scrubland is a sclerophyllous evergreen Mediterranean-like vegetation occurring in the leeward slopes of the main Mexican mountain ranges, under tropical climate. This biome occupies an elevational range approximately from 1900 to 2600 meters above sea level, which frequently is the upper-most part of the mountains range. This puts it at risk of extinction in a scenario of global warming in which an upward retraction of this type of vegetation is expected. The Mexical remains one of the least studied ecosystems in Mexico. For instance, nothing is known about pollinator fauna of this vegetation. Our main objective is to make a first insight into the taxonomic identity of the bee fauna that inhabits this biome, and to study how it is distributed along the elevational gradient that it occupies. Our results highlight that elevation gradient negatively affects bee species richness and that this relationship is strongly mediated by temperature. Bee abundance had no significant pattern along elevational gradient, but shows a significant relationship with flower density. Interestingly, and contrary to previous works, we obtained a different pattern for bee richness and bee abundance. Bee community composition changed strongly along elevation gradient, mainly in relation to temperature and flower density. In a global warming scenario, as temperatures increases, species with cold preferences, occupying the highest part of the elevation gradient, are likely to suffer negative consequences (even extinction risk), if they are not flexible enough to adjust their physiology and/or some life-story traits to warmer conditions. Species occupying mid and lower elevations are likely to extend their range of elevational distribution towards higher ranges. This will foreseeably cause a new composition of species and a new scenario of interactions, the adjustment of which still leaves many unknowns to solve.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergio Osorio-Canadas
- Departamento de Ecología de la Biodiversidad, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Noé Flores-Hernández
- Departamento de Ecología de la Biodiversidad, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
- Departamento de Ciencias Ambientales, División de Ciencias Biológicas y de la Salud, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Unidad Lerma, Lerma de Villada, Mexico
| | - Tania Sánchez-Ortiz
- Departamento de Ecología de la Biodiversidad, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
| | - Alfonso Valiente-Banuet
- Departamento de Ecología de la Biodiversidad, Instituto de Ecología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
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8
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Brassard F, Francoeur A, Lessard JP. Temperature drives caste-specific morphological clines in ants. J Anim Ecol 2020; 89:2517-2530. [PMID: 32858759 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13330] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2019] [Accepted: 07/31/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The morphology of organisms relates to most aspects of their life history and autecology. As such, elucidating the drivers of morphological variation along environmental gradients might give insight into processes limiting species distributions. In eusocial organisms, the concept of morphology is more complex than in solitary organisms. Eusocial insects such as ants exhibit drastic morphological differences between reproductive and worker castes. How environmental selection operates on the morphology of each caste, and whether caste-specific selection has fitness consequences is largely unknown, but is potentially crucial to understand what limits ant species' distributions. Here we aimed to examine whether ant shape and body size covaries with climate at the scale of an entire continent, and whether such relationship might be caste specific. We used 26,472 georeferenced morphometric measurements from 2,206 individual ants belonging to 32 closely related North American species in the genus Formica to assess how ant morphology relates to geographic variation in the abiotic environment. Although precipitation and seasonality explained some of the geographic variation in morphology, temperature was the best predictor. Specifically, geographic variation in body size was positively related to temperature, meaning that ants are smaller in cold than in warm environments. Moreover, the strength of the relationship between size and temperature was stronger for the reproductive castes (i.e. queens and males) than for the worker caste. The shape of workers and males also varied along these large-scale abiotic gradients. Specifically, the relative length of workers' legs, thoraxes and antennae positively related to temperature, meaning that they had shorter appendages in cold environments. In contrast, males had smaller heads, but larger thoraxes in more seasonal environments. Overall, our results suggest that geographic variation in ambient temperature influences the morphology of ants, but that the strength of this effect is caste specific. In conclusion, whereas ant ecology has traditionally focused on workers, our study shows that considering the ecology of the reproductive castes is imperative to move forward in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - André Francoeur
- Department of Biology, University of Quebec at Chicoutimi, Chicoutimi, QC, Canada
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Silva-de la Fuente MC, Moreno Salas L, Casanueva ME, Lareschi M, González-Acuña D. Morphometric variation of Androlaelaps fahrenholzi (Mesostigmata: Laelapidae) associated with three Sigmodontinae (Rodentia: Cricetidae) from the north of Chile. EXPERIMENTAL & APPLIED ACAROLOGY 2020; 81:135-148. [PMID: 32285240 DOI: 10.1007/s10493-020-00490-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2014] [Accepted: 04/06/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Androlaelaps fahrenholzi is a mite with a large distribution and associated with a wide range of hosts. To assess morphometric variation of A. fahrenholzi associated with different host species (Phyllotis xanthopygus and Akodon albiventer, both from Putre, Chile) and localities (Las Chinchillas National Reserve, Fray Jorge National Park, and Llanos de Challe National Park, all in Chile and all from the host Phyllotis darwini), 41 morphological characters of each specimen were measured, and principal component analysis and discriminant analysis were used. Both analyses showed two groups separated for species of rodents. Mites associated with P. xanthopygus are smaller than those of A. albiventer. The analysis by location indicates two groups: group 1 comprises all mites collected from Fray Jorge National Park and Las Chinchillas National Reserve, and group 2 comprises only mites from Llanos de Challe National Park. These results indicate that A. fahrenholzi population can vary between hosts and geographical areas. Molecular analysis would be necessary to validate these results and determine whether they are subspecies or different species.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Carolina Silva-de la Fuente
- Departamento de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanográficas, Universidad de Concepción, Barrio Universitario s/n, Concepción, Chile
- Departamento de Ciencia Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad de Concepción, Av. Vicente Méndez 595, Chillán, Chile
| | - Lucila Moreno Salas
- Departamento de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanográficas, Universidad de Concepción, Barrio Universitario s/n, Concepción, Chile.
| | - María Eugenia Casanueva
- Departamento de Zoología, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Oceanográficas, Universidad de Concepción, Barrio Universitario s/n, Concepción, Chile
| | - Marcela Lareschi
- Centro de Estudios Parasitológicos y de Vectores, CEPAVE (CCT CONICET La Plata--UNLP), Bv. 120 e/ Av. 60 y Calle 64, 1900, La Plata, Argentina
- Cátedra Zoología General, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata, Argentina
| | - Daniel González-Acuña
- Departamento de Ciencia Animal, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad de Concepción, Av. Vicente Méndez 595, Chillán, Chile
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10
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Kaspari M, Welti EAR, Beurs KM. The nutritional geography of ants: Gradients of sodium and sugar limitation across North American grasslands. J Anim Ecol 2019; 89:276-284. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2019] [Accepted: 09/18/2019] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Michael Kaspari
- Geographical Ecology Group Department of Biology University of Oklahoma Norman OK USA
| | - Ellen A. R. Welti
- Geographical Ecology Group Department of Biology University of Oklahoma Norman OK USA
| | - Kirsten M. Beurs
- Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability University of Oklahoma Norman OK USA
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11
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Silvestre M, Aguilar A, Seoane J, Azcárate FM. Responses of seed size, ant worker size, and seed removal rate to elevation in Mediterranean grasslands. Oecologia 2019; 189:781-793. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-019-04356-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2019] [Accepted: 02/07/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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12
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Wills BD, Powell S, Rivera MD, Suarez AV. Correlates and Consequences of Worker Polymorphism in Ants. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ENTOMOLOGY 2018; 63:575-598. [PMID: 29068707 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ento-020117-043357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Body size is a key life-history trait influencing all aspects of an organism's biology. Ants provide an interesting model for examining body-size variation because of the high degree of worker polymorphism seen in many taxa. We review worker-size variation in ants from the perspective of factors internal and external to the colony that may influence body-size distributions. We also discuss proximate and ultimate causes of size variation and how variation in worker size can promote worker efficiency and colony fitness. Our review focuses on two questions: What is our current understanding of factors influencing worker-size variation? And how does variation in body size benefit the colony? We conclude with recommendations for future work aimed at addressing current limitations and ask, How can we better understand the contribution of worker body-size variation to colony success? And, what research is needed to address gaps in our knowledge?
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Affiliation(s)
- Bill D Wills
- Department of Entomology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824, USA;
| | - Scott Powell
- Department of Biological Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA;
| | - Michael D Rivera
- Program in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA;
| | - Andrew V Suarez
- Program in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA;
- Department of Entomology, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA;
- Department of Animal Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA
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13
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Antonov IA. Interpopulation variation in morphometric characteristics of the ant Myrmica angulinodis Ruzs. (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in the Baikal region. RUSS J ECOL+ 2017. [DOI: 10.1134/s106741361704004x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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14
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Segev U, Kigel J, Lubin Y, Tielbörger K. Ant Abundance along a Productivity Gradient: Addressing Two Conflicting Hypotheses. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0131314. [PMID: 26176853 PMCID: PMC4503676 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0131314] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2014] [Accepted: 06/01/2015] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The number of individuals within a population or community and their body size can be associated with changes in resource supply. While these relationships may provide a key to better understand the role of abiotic vs. biotic constraints in animal communities, little is known about the way size and abundance of organisms change along resource gradients. Here, we studied this interplay in ants, addressing two hypotheses with opposite predictions regarding variation in population densities along resource gradients- the 'productivity hypothesis' and the 'productivity-based thinning hypothesis'. The hypotheses were tested in two functional groups of ground-dwelling ants that are directly primary consumers feeding on seeds: specialized seed-eaters and generalist species. We examined variations in colony density and foraging activity (a size measurement of the forager caste) in six ant assemblages along a steep productivity gradient in a semi-arid region, where precipitation and plant biomass vary 6-fold over a distance of 250km. An increase in the density or foraging activity of ant colonies along productivity gradients is also likely to affect competitive interactions among colonies, and consequently clinal changes in competition intensity were also examined. Ant foraging activity increased with productivity for both functional groups. However, colony density revealed opposing patterns: it increased with productivity for the specialized seed-eaters, but decreased for the generalist species. Competition intensity, evaluated by spatial partitioning of species at food baits and distribution of colonies, was uncorrelated with productivity in the specialized seed-eaters, but decreased with increasing productivity in the generalists. Our results provide support for two contrasting hypotheses regarding the effect of resource availability on the abundance of colonial organisms- the 'productivity hypothesis' for specialized seed-eaters and the 'productivity-based thinning hypothesis' for generalist species. These results also stress the importance of considering the role of functional groups in studies of community structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Udi Segev
- Institute for Plant Sciences, Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Jaime Kigel
- Institute for Plant Sciences, Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Yael Lubin
- Mitrani Department of Desert Ecology, Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Midreshet Ben-Gurion, Israel
| | - Katja Tielbörger
- Plant Ecology Department, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
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15
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Ferguson-Gow H, Sumner S, Bourke AFG, Jones KE. Colony size predicts division of labour in attine ants. Proc Biol Sci 2014; 281:20141411. [PMID: 25165765 PMCID: PMC4173680 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2014.1411] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2014] [Accepted: 08/01/2014] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Division of labour is central to the ecological success of eusocial insects, yet the evolutionary factors driving increases in complexity in division of labour are little known. The size-complexity hypothesis proposes that, as larger colonies evolve, both non-reproductive and reproductive division of labour become more complex as workers and queens act to maximize inclusive fitness. Using a statistically robust phylogenetic comparative analysis of social and environmental traits of species within the ant tribe Attini, we show that colony size is positively related to both non-reproductive (worker size variation) and reproductive (queen-worker dimorphism) division of labour. The results also suggested that colony size acts on non-reproductive and reproductive division of labour in different ways. Environmental factors, including measures of variation in temperature and precipitation, had no significant effects on any division of labour measure or colony size. Overall, these results support the size-complexity hypothesis for the evolution of social complexity and division of labour in eusocial insects. Determining the evolutionary drivers of colony size may help contribute to our understanding of the evolution of social complexity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Henry Ferguson-Gow
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, Norfolk NR4 7TJ, UK Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, Regent's Park, London NW1 4RY, UK
| | - Seirian Sumner
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, Regent's Park, London NW1 4RY, UK
| | - Andrew F G Bourke
- School of Biological Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, Norfolk NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - Kate E Jones
- Institute of Zoology, Zoological Society of London, Regent's Park, London NW1 4RY, UK Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research, Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, Gower St., London WC1E 6BT, UK
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16
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Wills BD, Moreau CS, Wray BD, Hoffmann BD, Suarez AV. Body size variation and caste ratios in geographically distinct populations of the invasive big-headed ant,Pheidole megacephala(Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2014. [DOI: 10.1111/bij.12386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Bill D. Wills
- Department of Animal Biology; University of Illinois; 515 Morrill Hall, 505 S. Goodwin Ave. Urbana IL 61801 USA
| | - Corrie S. Moreau
- Department of Science and Education; Center for Integrative Research; Field Museum of Natural History; 1400 South Lake Shore Drive Chicago IL 60605 USA
| | - Brian D. Wray
- Department of Science and Education; Center for Integrative Research; Field Museum of Natural History; 1400 South Lake Shore Drive Chicago IL 60605 USA
| | - Benjamin D. Hoffmann
- CSIRO Land and Water Flagship, Tropical Ecosystems Research Centre; PMB 44 Winnellie NT 0822 Australia
| | - Andrew V. Suarez
- Department of Animal Biology; University of Illinois; 515 Morrill Hall, 505 S. Goodwin Ave. Urbana IL 61801 USA
- Program in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology; Department of Entomology; University of Illinois; 320 Morrill Hall, 505 S. Goodwin Ave. Urbana IL 61801 USA
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17
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Majer M, Agnarsson I, Svenning JC, Bilde T. Social spiders of the genus Anelosimus occur in wetter, more productive environments than non-social species. Naturwissenschaften 2013; 100:1031-40. [PMID: 24177705 DOI: 10.1007/s00114-013-1106-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2013] [Revised: 09/23/2013] [Accepted: 10/07/2013] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Latitude, rainfall, and productivity have been shown to influence social organisation and level of sociality in arthropods on large geographic scales. Social spiders form permanent group-living societies where they cooperate in brood care, web maintenance, and foraging. Sociality has evolved independently in a number of unrelated spider genera and may reflect convergent evolutionary responses to common environmental drivers. The genus Anelosimus contains a third of approximately 25 described permanently social spider species, eight to nine species that all occur in the Americas. To test for environmental correlates of sociality in Anelosimus across the Americas, we used logistic regression to detect effects of annual rainfall, productivity, and precipitation seasonality on the relative likelihood of occurrence of social and non-social Anelosimus spiders. Our analyses show that social species tend to occur at higher annual rainfall and productivity than non-social species, supporting the hypothesised effects of these environmental variables on the geographical distribution of social species. We did not find support for the hypothesis that permanently social species occur in areas with low precipitation seasonality. High annual precipitation and, to less extent, high productivity favour the occurrence of permanently group-living Anelosimus spiders relative to subsocial and solitary species. These results are partially consistent with previous findings for the Old World spider genus Stegodyphus, where a link between high habitat productivity and sociality was also found. Unlike Anelosimus, however, Stegodyphus typically occur in dry habitats negating a general importance of high precipitation for sociality. Sociality in spiders thus seems to be strongly linked to productivity, probably reflecting the need for relatively high availability of large prey to sustain social colonies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marija Majer
- Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ny Munkegade 116, 8000, Aarhus-C, Denmark,
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18
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Imported crazy ant displaces imported fire ant, reduces and homogenizes grassland ant and arthropod assemblages. Biol Invasions 2013. [DOI: 10.1007/s10530-013-0463-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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19
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Kaspari M, Donoso D, Lucas JA, Zumbusch T, Kay AD. Using nutritional ecology to predict community structure: a field test in Neotropical ants. Ecosphere 2012. [DOI: 10.1890/es12-00136.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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20
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Joern A, Laws AN. Ecological mechanisms underlying arthropod species diversity in grasslands. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ENTOMOLOGY 2012; 58:19-36. [PMID: 22830354 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ento-120811-153540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
Arthropods are an important component of grassland systems, contributing significantly to biodiversity and ecosystem structure and function. Climate, fire, and grazing by large herbivores are important drivers in grasslands worldwide. Arthropod responses to these drivers are highly variable and clear patterns are difficult to find, but responses are largely indirect with respect to changes in resources, species interactions, habitat structure, and habitat heterogeneity resulting from interactions among fire, grazing, and climate. Here, we review these ecological mechanisms influencing grassland arthropod diversity. We summarize hypotheses describing species diversity at local and regional scales and then discuss specific factors that may affect arthropod diversity in grassland systems. These factors include direct and indirect effects of grazing, fire, and climate, species interactions, above- and belowground interactions, and landscape-level effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony Joern
- Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas 66506, USA.
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21
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MORALES-CASTILLA IGNACIO, RODRÍGUEZ MIGUELÁ, HAWKINS BRADFORDA. Deep phylogeny, net primary productivity, and global body size gradient in birds. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2012. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2012.01917.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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22
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Pringle EG, Dirzo R, Gordon DM. Plant defense, herbivory, and the growth of Cordia alliodora trees and their symbiotic Azteca ant colonies. Oecologia 2012; 170:677-85. [PMID: 22562422 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-012-2340-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2011] [Accepted: 04/16/2012] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
The effects of herbivory on plant fitness are integrated over a plant's lifetime, mediated by ontogenetic changes in plant defense, tolerance, and herbivore pressure. In symbiotic ant-plant mutualisms, plants provide nesting space and food for ants, and ants defend plants against herbivores. The benefit to the plant of sustaining the growth of symbiotic ant colonies depends on whether defense by the growing ant colony outpaces the plant's growth in defendable area and associated herbivore pressure. These relationships were investigated in the symbiotic mutualism between Cordia alliodora trees and Azteca pittieri ants in a Mexican tropical dry forest. As ant colonies grew, worker production remained constant relative to ant-colony size. As trees grew, leaf production increased relative to tree size. Moreover, larger trees hosted lower densities of ants, suggesting that ant-colony growth did not keep pace with tree growth. On leaves with ants experimentally excluded, herbivory per unit leaf area increased exponentially with tree size, indicating that larger trees experienced higher herbivore pressure per leaf area than smaller trees. Even with ant defense, herbivory increased with tree size. Therefore, although larger trees had larger ant colonies, ant density was lower in larger trees, and the ant colonies did not provide sufficient defense to compensate for the higher herbivore pressure in larger trees. These results suggest that in this system the tree can decrease herbivory by promoting ant-colony growth, i.e., sustaining space and food investment in ants, as long as the tree continues to grow.
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23
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Mulder C, Boit A, Mori S, Vonk JA, Dyer SD, Faggiano L, Geisen S, González AL, Kaspari M, Lavorel S, Marquet PA, Rossberg AG, Sterner RW, Voigt W, Wall DH. Distributional (In)Congruence of Biodiversity–Ecosystem Functioning. ADV ECOL RES 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-396992-7.00001-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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24
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Dornhaus A, Powell S, Bengston S. Group size and its effects on collective organization. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ENTOMOLOGY 2011; 57:123-141. [PMID: 21888521 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ento-120710-100604] [Citation(s) in RCA: 100] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Many insects and arthropods live in colonies or aggregations of varying size. Group size may affect collective organization either because the same individual behavior has different consequences when displayed in a larger group or because larger groups are subject to different constraints and selection pressures than smaller groups. In eusocial colonies, group size may have similar effects on colony traits as body size has on organismal traits. Social insects may, therefore, be useful to test theories about general principles of scaling, as they constitute a distinct level of organization. However, there is a surprising lack of data on group sizes in social insects and other group-living arthropods, and multiple confounding factors have to be controlled to detect effects of group size. If such rigorous studies are performed, group size may become as important to understanding collective organization as is body size in explaining behavior and life history of individual organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Dornhaus
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA.
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25
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Huston MA, Wolverton S. Regulation of animal size by eNPP, Bergmann's rule, and related phenomena. ECOL MONOGR 2011. [DOI: 10.1890/10-1523.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 135] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
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26
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Archibald SB, Johnson KR, Mathewes RW, Greenwood DR. Intercontinental dispersal of giant thermophilic ants across the Arctic during early Eocene hyperthermals. Proc Biol Sci 2011; 278:3679-86. [PMID: 21543354 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2011.0729] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Early Eocene land bridges allowed numerous plant and animal species to cross between Europe and North America via the Arctic. While many species suited to prevailing cool Arctic climates would have been able to cross throughout much of this period, others would have found dispersal opportunities only during limited intervals when their requirements for higher temperatures were met. Here, we present Titanomyrma lubei gen. et sp. nov. from Wyoming, USA, a new giant (greater than 5 cm long) formiciine ant from the early Eocene (approx. 49.5 Ma) Green River Formation. We show that the extinct ant subfamily Formiciinae is only known from localities with an estimated mean annual temperature of about 20°C or greater, consistent with the tropical ranges of almost all of the largest living ant species. This is, to our knowledge, the first known formiciine of gigantic size in the Western Hemisphere and the first reported cross-Arctic dispersal by a thermophilic insect group. This implies intercontinental migration during one or more brief high-temperature episodes (hyperthermals) sometime between the latest Palaeocene establishment of intercontinental land connections and the presence of giant formiciines in Europe and North America by the early middle Eocene.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Bruce Archibald
- Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, V5A 1S6.
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27
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Mulder C, Vonk JA, Den Hollander HA, Hendriks AJ, Breure AM. How allometric scaling relates to soil abiotics. OIKOS 2011. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1600-0706.2011.18869.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
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28
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Kaspari M, Powell S, Lattke J, O’Donnell S. Predation and patchiness in the tropical litter: do swarm-raiding army ants skim the cream or drain the bottle? J Anim Ecol 2011; 80:818-23. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2656.2011.01826.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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29
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Mulder C, Boit A, Bonkowski M, De Ruiter PC, Mancinelli G, Van der Heijden MG, Van Wijnen HJ, Vonk JA, Rutgers M. A Belowground Perspective on Dutch Agroecosystems: How Soil Organisms Interact to Support Ecosystem Services. ADV ECOL RES 2011. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-374794-5.00005-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 80] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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30
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31
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Smith CR, Dolezal A, Eliyahu D, Holbrook CT, Gadau J. Ants (Formicidae): models for social complexity. Cold Spring Harb Protoc 2010; 2009:pdb.emo125. [PMID: 20147200 DOI: 10.1101/pdb.emo125] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
The family Formicidae (ants) is composed of more than 12,000 described species that vary greatly in size, morphology, behavior, life history, ecology, and social organization. Ants occur in most terrestrial habitats and are the dominant animals in many of them. They have been used as models to address fundamental questions in ecology, evolution, behavior, and development. The literature on ants is extensive, and the natural history of many species is known in detail. Phylogenetic relationships for the family, as well as within many subfamilies, are known, enabling comparative studies. Their ease of sampling and ecological variation makes them attractive for studying populations and questions relating to communities. Their sociality and variation in social organization have contributed greatly to an understanding of complex systems, division of labor, and chemical communication. Ants occur in colonies composed of tens to millions of individuals that vary greatly in morphology, physiology, and behavior; this variation has been used to address proximate and ultimate mechanisms generating phenotypic plasticity. Relatedness asymmetries within colonies have been fundamental to the formulation and empirical testing of kin and group selection theories. Genomic resources have been developed for some species, and a whole-genome sequence for several species is likely to follow in the near future; comparative genomics in ants should provide new insights into the evolution of complexity and sociogenomics. Future studies using ants should help establish a more comprehensive understanding of social life, from molecules to colonies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chris R Smith
- School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287, USA.
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32
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PIMENTEL CARLA, FERREIRA CLAUDIA, NILSSON JANÅKE. Latitudinal gradients and the shaping of life-history traits in a gregarious caterpillar. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2010. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2010.01413.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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33
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Rueppell O, Kaftanouglu O, Page RE. Honey bee (Apis mellifera) workers live longer in small than in large colonies. Exp Gerontol 2009; 44:447-52. [PMID: 19389467 PMCID: PMC2690613 DOI: 10.1016/j.exger.2009.04.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2008] [Revised: 02/24/2009] [Accepted: 04/13/2009] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Social insect colonies are highly integrated units that can be regarded in some respects as super-organisms, with colony size and individuals analogous to body size and cells in unitary organisms. In both, unitary organisms and super-organisms, the relation between body/colony size and lifespan of the constituent units (cells/individuals) is important for understanding systemic aging but remains to be explored. Therefore, this study compared the life-history and longevity of individual honey bee workers between a large and a small colony social environment. We found that individuals in large colonies were consistently shorter lived than individuals in small colonies. This experimental effect occurred in both principal life history phases of honey bee workers, the in-hive and the foraging stage, independently of the age of the workers at their transition between the two. Nevertheless, this age of first foraging was a key determinant of worker longevity, in accordance with previous studies. The large colonies raised more brood, built more comb, and foraged at higher rates. Our results do not comply with the idea that social group size has a positive effect on individual longevity. Instead, our findings suggest that large and small colonies follow different demographic growth trajectories, trading off longevity of individuals for overall colony growth. Similarly, multi-cellular organisms might sacrifice maintenance and repair of their individual constituent cells for enhanced metabolic activity and organismal growth, leading to the widely-observed negative correlation between longevity and body size within species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olav Rueppell
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, Greensboro, 312 Eberhart Building, 1000 Spring Garden Street, Greensboro, NC 27403, USA.
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34
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Molet M, Baalen M, Peeters C. Shift in Colonial Reproductive Strategy Associated with a Tropical‐Temperate Gradient in Rhytidoponera Ants. Am Nat 2008; 172:75-87. [DOI: 10.1086/588079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
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35
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White EP, Ernest SKM, Kerkhoff AJ, Enquist BJ. Relationships between body size and abundance in ecology. Trends Ecol Evol 2007; 22:323-30. [PMID: 17399851 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2007.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 376] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2006] [Revised: 02/19/2007] [Accepted: 03/15/2007] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Body size is perhaps the most fundamental property of an organism and is related to many biological traits, including abundance. The relationship between abundance and body size has been extensively studied in an attempt to quantify the form of the relationship and to understand the processes that generate it. However, progress has been impeded by the under appreciated fact that there are four distinct, but interrelated, relationships between size and abundance that are often confused in the literature. Here, we review and distinguish between these four patterns, and discuss the linkages between them. We argue that a synthetic understanding of size-abundance relationships will result from more detailed analyses of individual patterns and from careful consideration of how and why the patterns are related.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ethan P White
- Department of Biology and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322, USA.
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36
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Clémencet J, Doums C. Habitat-related microgeographic variation of worker size and colony size in the ant Cataglyphis cursor. Oecologia 2007; 152:211-8. [PMID: 17245588 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-006-0646-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2006] [Accepted: 12/11/2006] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
In social insects, colony size is a crucial life-history trait thought to have major implications for the evolution of social complexity, especially in relation to worker size polymorphism. Yet, little is known about how ecological factors can affect and constrain colony. Here, we explored the pattern of colony-size and worker-size variation in the Mediterranean ant Cataglyphis cursor, in relation to the type of habitats colonized (seaside vs. vineyard). The high level of the water table in the seaside habitat could constrain the depth of C. cursor underground nests and directly constrain its colony size. If worker size increases with colony size, as observed in other ant species, larger colony size and larger workers should be found in the vineyard populations. By comparing worker size among 16 populations, we verified that workers were significantly larger in the vineyard populations. We further determined that the morphological similarities detected among populations from the same habitat type were not due to geographic or genetic proximity. In two populations from each habitat type, the depth of nests was positively correlated with colony size and colony size with worker size. Using a type II regression approach, we further showed that the difference between the two populations in the depth of nest was sufficient to explain the difference in colony size, and similarly, variation in colony size was sufficient to explain variation in worker size. Our results suggest that a single proximate ecological factor could lead to significant variation in major life-history parameters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johanna Clémencet
- Laboratoire Fonctionnement et Evolution des Systèmes Ecologiques, UMR 7625, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Bat A, 7ème étage, CC 237, 7 quai Saint-Bernard, 75252 Paris Cedex 05, France.
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37
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Thomas ML, Payne-Makrisâ CM, Suarez AV, Tsutsui ND, Holway DA. When supercolonies collide: territorial aggression in an invasive and unicolonial social insect. Mol Ecol 2007; 15:4303-15. [PMID: 17107467 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-294x.2006.03038.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Some species of ants possess an unusual form of social organization in which aggression among nests is absent. This type of social organization, called unicoloniality, has been studied in only a handful of species and its evolutionary origins remain unclear. To date, no study has examined behavioural and genetic patterns at points of contact between the massive supercolonies that characterize unicoloniality. Since interactions at territory boundaries influence the costs of aggression and the likelihood of gene flow, such data may illuminate how supercolonies are formed and maintained. Here we provide field data on intraspecific territoriality for a widespread and invasive unicolonial social insect, the Argentine ant (Linepithema humile). We observed abrupt and well-defined behavioural boundaries at 16 contact zones between three different pairs of supercolonies. We visited nine of these zones weekly during a six-month period and observed consistent and intense intercolony aggression that resulted in variable, but often large, levels of worker mortality. Microsatellite variation along six transects across territory borders showed that F(ST) values were lower within supercolonies (0.08 +/- 0.01 (mean +/- SE)) than between supercolonies (0.29 +/- 0.01) and that this disparity was especially strong right at territory borders, despite direct and prolonged contact between the supercolonies. Matrix correspondence tests confirmed that levels of aggression and genetic differentiation were significantly correlated, but no relationship existed between geographic distance and either intraspecific aggression or genetic differentiation. Patterns of F(ST) variation indicated high levels of gene flow within supercolonies, but little to no gene flow between them. Overall, these findings are inconsistent with a model of relaxed ecological constraints leading to colony fusion and suggest that environmentally derived cues are not the prime determined of nestmate recognition in field populations of Argentine ants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa L Thomas
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of California at San Diego, 9500 Gilman Dr., La Jolla, CA 92093-0346, USA.
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