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A type of unicoloniality within the native range of the fire ant Solenopsis saevissima
Jean-Michel Martin1, Olivier Roux, Sarah Groc
1Écologie des Forêts-de-Guyane, UMR-CNRS, Campus agronomique, Kourou, France.
Abstract:
To determine if a type of unicoloniality exists in the fire ant Solenopsis saevissima in its native range, we conducted intraspecific aggressiveness tests in French Guiana between workers originating from 15 human-disturbed sites. We identified two "colonial groups" spread over 54 km and 12.5 km, respectively. Workers from the same group never attacked each other, but inter-group confrontations resulted in a high level of aggressiveness. These large "colonial groups" enhances the threat occasioned by S. saevissima for both agriculture and the environment.
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