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Ritualized aggressive behavior reveals distinct social structures in native and introduced range tawny crazy ants.
Edward G LeBrun1, Robert M Plowes1, Patricia J Folgarait2
1Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, United States of America.
Plos One
|November 23, 2019
Summary
Tawny crazy ants (Nylanderia fulva) show distinct social structures across continents. In the US, they are unicolonial with no aggression, while native South American populations exhibit ritualized aggression, revealing varied colony organization.
Area of Science:
- Behavioral Ecology
- Social Insects
- Invasive Species Biology
Background:
- Ant colony boundaries and worker behavior are key to species' social organization.
- Ants range from single-queen to multi-queen societies with varying levels of altruism.
- Understanding colony structure is crucial for basic ant ecology.
Purpose of the Study:
- Quantify queen numbers, aggression, and colony size distribution in Nylanderia fulva.
- Compare colony organization in native South American and introduced US ranges.
- Investigate the origins of unicoloniality in invasive ant populations.
Main Methods:
- Field studies in South America and the Southeastern US.
- Quantification of queen numbers and nest sizes.
- Intraspecific aggression assays and neutral arena tests.
Main Results:
- Multi-queen nests are common in both native and introduced ranges.
- Nylanderia fulva in the US are unicolonial, exhibiting no aggression.
- Native populations display ritualized, one-sided intraspecific aggression.
- Colony size and queen number vary significantly across native-range sites.
Conclusions:
- Nylanderia fulva exhibits significant variation in colony organization between its native and introduced ranges.
- The absence of aggression in the introduced range supports unicoloniality.
- Understanding native-range variation is essential for explaining the evolution of unicoloniality in invasive populations.
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