Pub Date : 2021-08-14DOI: 10.13102/sociobiology.v68i3.6022
Luiz Carlos Santos Junior, Emerson Douglas da Silva, W. Antonialli-Júnior
In social insects, situations can arise that threaten an individual or an entire colony. When the call for help goes out, different behavioral responses are elicited by signals emitted from nestmates. In ants, the response can be one of redemptive behavior by the worker receiving it. However, little is known about the evolution of this behavior and in which group of ants it manifests. Therefore, this study investigates whether workers of Odontomachus brunneus Patton can act as rescuers, able to detect and respond to calls for help from nestmates. Laboratory experiments were carried out in which the legs of ants were trapped by tape, simulating capture by a predator. Nearby were nestmates able to receive and respond to a request for help. Two experiments were performed: 1. Calls for help were made at different distances, in order to test the response latency. 2. Evaluation of whether rescuers would respond differently to calls for help from nestmates, non-nestmates of the same species, and ants of another species. Finally, evaluation was made of the behaviors of the rescuers when they responded to requests for help from nestmates and ants of another species. It could be concluded from the results that O. brunneus workers respond to signals emitted by workers who may have been captured by a potential predator, prompting the performance of behaviors related to rescue attempts. The signals involved appear to have an optimal range and are species-specific. When exposed to a capture situation, this species transmits audible signals by stridulation, so it is possible that this type of signal may be involved, in addition to chemical signaling.
{"title":"Do Odontomachus brunneus nestmates request for help and are taken care of when caught?","authors":"Luiz Carlos Santos Junior, Emerson Douglas da Silva, W. Antonialli-Júnior","doi":"10.13102/sociobiology.v68i3.6022","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.13102/sociobiology.v68i3.6022","url":null,"abstract":"In social insects, situations can arise that threaten an individual or an entire colony. When the call for help goes out, different behavioral responses are elicited by signals emitted from nestmates. In ants, the response can be one of redemptive behavior by the worker receiving it. However, little is known about the evolution of this behavior and in which group of ants it manifests. Therefore, this study investigates whether workers of Odontomachus brunneus Patton can act as rescuers, able to detect and respond to calls for help from nestmates. Laboratory experiments were carried out in which the legs of ants were trapped by tape, simulating capture by a predator. Nearby were nestmates able to receive and respond to a request for help. Two experiments were performed: 1. Calls for help were made at different distances, in order to test the response latency. 2. Evaluation of whether rescuers would respond differently to calls for help from nestmates, non-nestmates of the same species, and ants of another species. Finally, evaluation was made of the behaviors of the rescuers when they responded to requests for help from nestmates and ants of another species. It could be concluded from the results that O. brunneus workers respond to signals emitted by workers who may have been captured by a potential predator, prompting the performance of behaviors related to rescue attempts. The signals involved appear to have an optimal range and are species-specific. When exposed to a capture situation, this species transmits audible signals by stridulation, so it is possible that this type of signal may be involved, in addition to chemical signaling.","PeriodicalId":21971,"journal":{"name":"Sociobiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2021-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44830712","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-08-14DOI: 10.13102/sociobiology.v68i3.6173
Sourabh Bisui, U. Layek, P. Karmakar
Knowledge about floral resources is essential for bee management and conservation. Pollen analysis of honey is the most traditional method for determining the nectar resources of a bee species. However, the collection of honey samples is difficult in cavity-nesting natural stingless bee colonies. Furthermore, it is detrimental to the wild bee’s colony and may threaten their survivability. We analyzed adhered body surface pollen of incoming nectar foragers (which were smeared incidentally during nectar foraging) as an alternative method to determine nectariferous flora of Tetragonula iridipennis in West Bengal, India. By this method, we have identified 75 pollen types. The number of obtained pollen types was lower in the human-altered habitats of Midnapore city (44 pollen types) than the semi-natural habitats of Garhbeta (71 pollen types). Excluding a few pollen types of non-nectariferous plants, most of the pollen types came from nectariferous plants of both crop and non-crop species. Non-crop flowering plants (viz. Ailanthus excelsa, Borassus flabellifer, Eucalyptus tereticornis, Lannea coromandelica, Peltophorum pterocarpum, and Tectona grandis) provided a significant amount of nectar to the bee species and, therefore, play an important role in the conservation of the bee species.
{"title":"Determination of Nectar Resources through Body Surface Pollen Analysis: A Study with the Stingless Bee Tetragonula iridipennis Smith (Apidae: Meliponini) in West Bengal, India","authors":"Sourabh Bisui, U. Layek, P. Karmakar","doi":"10.13102/sociobiology.v68i3.6173","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.13102/sociobiology.v68i3.6173","url":null,"abstract":"Knowledge about floral resources is essential for bee management and conservation. Pollen analysis of honey is the most traditional method for determining the nectar resources of a bee species. However, the collection of honey samples is difficult in cavity-nesting natural stingless bee colonies. Furthermore, it is detrimental to the wild bee’s colony and may threaten their survivability. We analyzed adhered body surface pollen of incoming nectar foragers (which were smeared incidentally during nectar foraging) as an alternative method to determine nectariferous flora of Tetragonula iridipennis in West Bengal, India. By this method, we have identified 75 pollen types. The number of obtained pollen types was lower in the human-altered habitats of Midnapore city (44 pollen types) than the semi-natural habitats of Garhbeta (71 pollen types). Excluding a few pollen types of non-nectariferous plants, most of the pollen types came from nectariferous plants of both crop and non-crop species. Non-crop flowering plants (viz. Ailanthus excelsa, Borassus flabellifer, Eucalyptus tereticornis, Lannea coromandelica, Peltophorum pterocarpum, and Tectona grandis) provided a significant amount of nectar to the bee species and, therefore, play an important role in the conservation of the bee species.","PeriodicalId":21971,"journal":{"name":"Sociobiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2021-08-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41327965","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-06-17DOI: 10.13102/sociobiology.v68i2.6725
J. K. Wetterer
The ants of Saint Vincent have long been one of the most thoroughly documented ant faunas of any Caribbean island. Ant specimens collected more than 100 years ago on St. Vincent include 76 valid taxa. In ten days surveying ants on Saint Vincent, I found eleven species not found by previous researchers. Eight are widespread Neotropical species (Anochetus inermis, Camponotus claviscapus, Cyphomyrmex minutus, Odontomachus ruginodis, Pheidole exigua, Pheidole moerens, Rogeria curvipubens, Solenopsis corticalis) and three are Old World exotics (Cardiocondyla minutior, Syllophopsis sechellensis, Trichomyrmex destructor). Ant records from St. Vincent include more Neotropical species (72) and fewer Old World exotic species (15) than the neighboring Caribbean islands of similar size: Barbados and Grenada. Factors that may contribute to this pattern are that, compared to Barbados and Grenada, Saint Vincent has more mountainous terrain, more intact forest, lower human population density, and fewer international tourist visits.
{"title":"Ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) of St. Vincent, West Indies","authors":"J. K. Wetterer","doi":"10.13102/sociobiology.v68i2.6725","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.13102/sociobiology.v68i2.6725","url":null,"abstract":"The ants of Saint Vincent have long been one of the most thoroughly documented ant faunas of any Caribbean island. Ant specimens collected more than 100 years ago on St. Vincent include 76 valid taxa. In ten days surveying ants on Saint Vincent, I found eleven species not found by previous researchers. Eight are widespread Neotropical species (Anochetus inermis, Camponotus claviscapus, Cyphomyrmex minutus, Odontomachus ruginodis, Pheidole exigua, Pheidole moerens, Rogeria curvipubens, Solenopsis corticalis) and three are Old World exotics (Cardiocondyla minutior, Syllophopsis sechellensis, Trichomyrmex destructor). Ant records from St. Vincent include more Neotropical species (72) and fewer Old World exotic species (15) than the neighboring Caribbean islands of similar size: Barbados and Grenada. Factors that may contribute to this pattern are that, compared to Barbados and Grenada, Saint Vincent has more mountainous terrain, more intact forest, lower human population density, and fewer international tourist visits.","PeriodicalId":21971,"journal":{"name":"Sociobiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48956516","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-06-14DOI: 10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.6166
Cássio Zocca, F. Curbani, Rodrigo B. Ferreira, Cecília Weichert, T. Sobrinho, A. C. Srbek‐Araujo
Ants present a wide variety of nesting sites, feeding habits, and trophic interactions, but the biology of most species remains unknown. Dinoponera lucida is a poneromorph ant forest-specialist and solitary forager, endemic to the Brazil’s Atlantic Forest. Herein we describe foraging activities, guard and maintenance of the nests, orientation mode, and intraspecific interactions performed by D. lucida. We found three nests distant from each other at least 8.5 m, and the mean reached distance by a worker was 3.8 m. The workers showed colony fidelity and random forage in their territory. We observed two non-agonistic interactions between workers from the same nest, and two agonistic interactions between foraging workers from different nests. The low frequency of agonistic interactions suggests that workers from different nests are unlikely to forage in the same area. Our results expand the knowledge on ants’ natural history through data on foraging activities, guard and maintenance of the nests, orientation mode and intraspecific interactions.
{"title":"A Day in the Life of the Giant Ant Dinoponera lucida Emery, 1901 (Hymenoptera, Formicidae): Records of Activities and Intraspecific Interactions","authors":"Cássio Zocca, F. Curbani, Rodrigo B. Ferreira, Cecília Weichert, T. Sobrinho, A. C. Srbek‐Araujo","doi":"10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.6166","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.6166","url":null,"abstract":"Ants present a wide variety of nesting sites, feeding habits, and trophic interactions, but the biology of most species remains unknown. Dinoponera lucida is a poneromorph ant forest-specialist and solitary forager, endemic to the Brazil’s Atlantic Forest. Herein we describe foraging activities, guard and maintenance of the nests, orientation mode, and intraspecific interactions performed by D. lucida. We found three nests distant from each other at least 8.5 m, and the mean reached distance by a worker was 3.8 m. The workers showed colony fidelity and random forage in their territory. We observed two non-agonistic interactions between workers from the same nest, and two agonistic interactions between foraging workers from different nests. The low frequency of agonistic interactions suggests that workers from different nests are unlikely to forage in the same area. Our results expand the knowledge on ants’ natural history through data on foraging activities, guard and maintenance of the nests, orientation mode and intraspecific interactions.","PeriodicalId":21971,"journal":{"name":"Sociobiology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46356841","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-06-11DOI: 10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5928
J. Martínez, Rubilma Tarazona, B. Lohr, Consuelo Alexandra Narvaez
Pitfall trapping is one of the most frequently used methods to assess ground-active arthropods’ diversity and density (Brown & Matthews, 2016; Greenslade 1964; Southwood, 1978). Its advantages and drawbacks have been the subject of discussion for a long time (Adis, 1979, Southwood & Henderson, 2016). Many attempts have been made to correct some of the most salient biases resulting from it (Greenslade, 1964; Hayes, 1970; Gist & Crossley, 1973; Luff, 1975). Sheikh et al. (2018) provide a detailed review on the use of pitfall trapping for ants worldwide. However, despite the many complaints about the method and the voluminous literature about the subject, the possibility that Abstract Pitfall trapping remains one of the most frequently used methods to assess ground-active arthropods’ diversity and density. Yet, one of its main drawbacks, the possibility that repeated collecting may affect the study objects’ population, has not been formally tested. We studied the effect of a yearlong epigeal pitfall trapping exercise with 22 fortnightly capture events in four differently disturbed areas at the Colombian Pacific coast. A transect of 100 m length with ten equidistant pitfall traps was established in each area, and the traps were operated twice a month for 24 hours. Using count data regression models, we find that trapping did not affect subsequent captures when we analyzed non-ant arthropods. For ants, regression estimates indicate that each subsequent trapping in highly-disturbed environments ended, on average, reducing all ants in between -3.8 and -4.1%, and Ectatomma ruidum between -4.7 and -5.1%. We recommend bio-ecological aspects of the species under study be considered when interpreting results. This is important for future studies that rely on this method to deliver consistent estimates of population sizes or study their dynamics through time. At the same time, it is also a call for scientists to revise more carefully how species’ peculiar traits may limit the reliability of traditional methods. Sociobiology An international journal on social insects
{"title":"Measuring the effect of long-term pitfall trapping on the prevalence of epigeal arthropods: A case study in the Pacific Coast of Colombia","authors":"J. Martínez, Rubilma Tarazona, B. Lohr, Consuelo Alexandra Narvaez","doi":"10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5928","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5928","url":null,"abstract":"Pitfall trapping is one of the most frequently used methods to assess ground-active arthropods’ diversity and density (Brown & Matthews, 2016; Greenslade 1964; Southwood, 1978). Its advantages and drawbacks have been the subject of discussion for a long time (Adis, 1979, Southwood & Henderson, 2016). Many attempts have been made to correct some of the most salient biases resulting from it (Greenslade, 1964; Hayes, 1970; Gist & Crossley, 1973; Luff, 1975). Sheikh et al. (2018) provide a detailed review on the use of pitfall trapping for ants worldwide. However, despite the many complaints about the method and the voluminous literature about the subject, the possibility that Abstract Pitfall trapping remains one of the most frequently used methods to assess ground-active arthropods’ diversity and density. Yet, one of its main drawbacks, the possibility that repeated collecting may affect the study objects’ population, has not been formally tested. We studied the effect of a yearlong epigeal pitfall trapping exercise with 22 fortnightly capture events in four differently disturbed areas at the Colombian Pacific coast. A transect of 100 m length with ten equidistant pitfall traps was established in each area, and the traps were operated twice a month for 24 hours. Using count data regression models, we find that trapping did not affect subsequent captures when we analyzed non-ant arthropods. For ants, regression estimates indicate that each subsequent trapping in highly-disturbed environments ended, on average, reducing all ants in between -3.8 and -4.1%, and Ectatomma ruidum between -4.7 and -5.1%. We recommend bio-ecological aspects of the species under study be considered when interpreting results. This is important for future studies that rely on this method to deliver consistent estimates of population sizes or study their dynamics through time. At the same time, it is also a call for scientists to revise more carefully how species’ peculiar traits may limit the reliability of traditional methods. Sociobiology An international journal on social insects","PeriodicalId":21971,"journal":{"name":"Sociobiology","volume":"68 1","pages":"5928"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48105123","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-06-11DOI: 10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5911
N. A. Hussin, Abdul Majid
The subterranean termite Globitermes sulphureus is commonly found in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam (Ahmad, 1965; Bordereau et al., 1997; Kuswanto et al., 2015; Lee et al., 2007; Ngee & Lee, 2002). This termite belongs to higher group termites which possess only bacteria and archaea in their gut (Bujang et al., 2014). As a wood feeder termite, this species has been reported to infest premises’ wood structures (Ab Majid & Ahmad, 2009; Neoh et al., 2011). Moreover, it was also reported as the primary pest in agricultural sectors such as coconut and oil palm plantations (Lee et al., 2003). G. sulphureus is recognized as a pest of significant economic importance in Southeast Asia (Rust & Su, 2012). Abstract The subterranean higher termite Globitermes sulphureus (Blattodea: Termitidae) is a peridomestic forager and regarded as a significant pest in Southeast Asia. In this study, populations of G. sulphureus from the USM main campus area were investigated based on partial sequences of the mitochondrial COII gene. The genetic diversity was determined using DnaSP v5 software, while the phylogenetic relationship was defined using Neighbor-joining (NJ) and maximum likelihood (ML) methods using Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis (MEGA 7) software. A total of 2 haplotypes were detected among 5 sample sequences distinguished through two variable sites. Also, both phylogenetic trees gave similar topology and supporting the results from haplotype diversity. Based on the haplotype diversity and molecular phylogeny, it is proposed that geographic isolation and lack of human activities have contributed to the neutral genetic diversity of G. sulphureus. Sociobiology An international journal on social insects
地下白蚁Globitermes sulphuurus常见于马来西亚、新加坡、泰国和越南(Ahmad, 1965;Bordereau et al.， 1997;Kuswanto et al.， 2015;Lee et al.， 2007;Ngee & Lee, 2002)。这种白蚁属于高级白蚁群，它们的肠道中只含有细菌和古细菌(Bujang et al.， 2014)。作为一种食木白蚁，据报道该物种会侵害房屋的木结构(Ab Majid & Ahmad, 2009;Neoh et al.， 2011)。此外，据报道，它也是椰子和油棕种植园等农业部门的主要害虫(Lee et al.， 2003)。G.硫脲被认为是东南亚具有重要经济意义的害虫(Rust & Su, 2012)。摘要地下高等白蚁gloitermes sulphureus(白蚁总目:白蚁科)是东南亚地区的一种重要害虫。本研究利用线粒体COII基因的部分序列对来自USM主校区的G. sulphurus种群进行了研究。采用DnaSP v5软件确定遗传多样性，采用分子进化遗传学分析(MEGA 7)软件采用Neighbor-joining (NJ)和最大似然(ML)方法确定系统发育关系。通过两个可变位点区分的5个样本序列共检测到2个单倍型。此外，两种系统发育树给出了相似的拓扑结构，并支持单倍型多样性的结果。基于单倍型多样性和分子系统发育的分析，认为地理隔离和人类活动的缺乏是造成硫柳属植物中性遗传多样性的主要原因。《社会生物学》关于群居昆虫的国际期刊
{"title":"Genetic diversity and phylogenetic relationship of higher termite Globitermes sulphureus (Haviland)(Blattodea:Termitidae)","authors":"N. A. Hussin, Abdul Majid","doi":"10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5911","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5911","url":null,"abstract":"The subterranean termite Globitermes sulphureus is commonly found in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam (Ahmad, 1965; Bordereau et al., 1997; Kuswanto et al., 2015; Lee et al., 2007; Ngee & Lee, 2002). This termite belongs to higher group termites which possess only bacteria and archaea in their gut (Bujang et al., 2014). As a wood feeder termite, this species has been reported to infest premises’ wood structures (Ab Majid & Ahmad, 2009; Neoh et al., 2011). Moreover, it was also reported as the primary pest in agricultural sectors such as coconut and oil palm plantations (Lee et al., 2003). G. sulphureus is recognized as a pest of significant economic importance in Southeast Asia (Rust & Su, 2012). Abstract The subterranean higher termite Globitermes sulphureus (Blattodea: Termitidae) is a peridomestic forager and regarded as a significant pest in Southeast Asia. In this study, populations of G. sulphureus from the USM main campus area were investigated based on partial sequences of the mitochondrial COII gene. The genetic diversity was determined using DnaSP v5 software, while the phylogenetic relationship was defined using Neighbor-joining (NJ) and maximum likelihood (ML) methods using Molecular Evolutionary Genetics Analysis (MEGA 7) software. A total of 2 haplotypes were detected among 5 sample sequences distinguished through two variable sites. Also, both phylogenetic trees gave similar topology and supporting the results from haplotype diversity. Based on the haplotype diversity and molecular phylogeny, it is proposed that geographic isolation and lack of human activities have contributed to the neutral genetic diversity of G. sulphureus. Sociobiology An international journal on social insects","PeriodicalId":21971,"journal":{"name":"Sociobiology","volume":"68 1","pages":"5911"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2021-06-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43926919","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-05-31DOI: 10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5941
K. Mahima, P. P. Anand, S. Seena, K. Shameema, E. M. Manogem, Y. Vardhanan
In eusocial insects, particularly in ants, caste differentiation is extremely complicated when we rely on traditional taxonomy. In most species, the worker caste does not display any distinct morphological characters neither the caste’s central division according to their morphological size variations. We used a landmark-based geometric morphometric approach to quantify the morphological characteristics of female caste systems (queen, major and minor worker ant) of Oecophylla smaragdina. Our findings suggested that each caste has its unique shape and size. Especially in the worker caste, apart from the size variations, we can use the shape as a prominent tool for distinguishing between them. The O. smaragdina exhibits a triphasic allometry pattern. Studying the allometry and non-allometry components of each caste system revealed a highly complex size and shape relationship in the female caste systems. From the allometric and non-allometric analysis, we concluded that the major worker ants showed a closer relationship with the queen than the minor worker ant. This outcome demonstrated that Asian weaver ant exhibits complex shape variations related to size and is correlated to their functional modular characters. This research sheds new light on caste systems’ taxonomic uncertainties for eusocial hymenopteran groups, especially ants.
{"title":"Caste-specific phenotypic plasticity of Asian weaver ants: Revealing the allometric and non-allometric component of female caste system of Oecophylla smaragdina (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) by using geometric morphometrics","authors":"K. Mahima, P. P. Anand, S. Seena, K. Shameema, E. M. Manogem, Y. Vardhanan","doi":"10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5941","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5941","url":null,"abstract":"In eusocial insects, particularly in ants, caste differentiation is extremely complicated when we rely on traditional taxonomy. In most species, the worker caste does not display any distinct morphological characters neither the caste’s central division according to their morphological size variations. We used a landmark-based geometric morphometric approach to quantify the morphological characteristics of female caste systems (queen, major and minor worker ant) of Oecophylla smaragdina. Our findings suggested that each caste has its unique shape and size. Especially in the worker caste, apart from the size variations, we can use the shape as a prominent tool for distinguishing between them. The O. smaragdina exhibits a triphasic allometry pattern. Studying the allometry and non-allometry components of each caste system revealed a highly complex size and shape relationship in the female caste systems. From the allometric and non-allometric analysis, we concluded that the major worker ants showed a closer relationship with the queen than the minor worker ant. This outcome demonstrated that Asian weaver ant exhibits complex shape variations related to size and is correlated to their functional modular characters. This research sheds new light on caste systems’ taxonomic uncertainties for eusocial hymenopteran groups, especially ants.","PeriodicalId":21971,"journal":{"name":"Sociobiology","volume":"68 1","pages":"5941"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2021-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43836149","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-05-31DOI: 10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.6159
T. Nozaki, M. Hojo, T. Yashiro, K. Matsuura
Some of termites have been introduced outside their native ranges, and it has been suggested that both wood-eating and wood-nesting lifestyles are critical for the transportation of propagules. Here, we present the first record of the soil-feeding and soil-nesting termite Pericapritermes nitobe i (Isoptera: Termitidae) in the Motobu Peninsula on the northern part of Okinawa Island in the Central Ryukyus. The fact that the previous extensive surveys of termites in the Ryukyu Archipelago did not detect P. nitobei in the Central Ryukyus, including the Motobu Peninsula, and its discontinuous distribution, indicate that P. nitobei has been recently introduced into the Motobu Peninsula of Okinawa Island from the Yaeyama Islands, similar to the fungus-growing and soil-nesting termite Odontotermes formosanus (Isoptera: Termitidae). Together with O. formosanus in the southern part of Okinawa Island, our findings in this study raise the possibility that non-wood-feeding and non-wood-nesting termites can be introduced and established outside their native ranges by human activities.
{"title":"First Record of the Soil-feeding Higher Termites (Isoptera: Termitidae) from Okinawa Island, the Central Ryukyus, Japan","authors":"T. Nozaki, M. Hojo, T. Yashiro, K. Matsuura","doi":"10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.6159","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.6159","url":null,"abstract":"Some of termites have been introduced outside their native ranges, and it has been suggested that both wood-eating and wood-nesting lifestyles are critical for the transportation of propagules. Here, we present the first record of the soil-feeding and soil-nesting termite Pericapritermes nitobe i (Isoptera: Termitidae) in the Motobu Peninsula on the northern part of Okinawa Island in the Central Ryukyus. The fact that the previous extensive surveys of termites in the Ryukyu Archipelago did not detect P. nitobei in the Central Ryukyus, including the Motobu Peninsula, and its discontinuous distribution, indicate that P. nitobei has been recently introduced into the Motobu Peninsula of Okinawa Island from the Yaeyama Islands, similar to the fungus-growing and soil-nesting termite Odontotermes formosanus (Isoptera: Termitidae). Together with O. formosanus in the southern part of Okinawa Island, our findings in this study raise the possibility that non-wood-feeding and non-wood-nesting termites can be introduced and established outside their native ranges by human activities.","PeriodicalId":21971,"journal":{"name":"Sociobiology","volume":"68 1","pages":"6159"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2021-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44027495","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-05-31DOI: 10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5863
Albeane Guimarães Silva, G. C. Carvalho, Ana Catarina De Miranda, F. Contrera, M. Rêgo
Bees feed on nectar and pollen, however these resources are often available to floral visitors during restricted temporal windows. The presence of temporal memory is an advantage, as foragers can save energy by scheduling their flight activity to coincide with peaks of nectar secretion in the flowers or at times of higher sugar concentration in the nectar. Thus, the objectives of this study were (i) to investigate whether Melipona subnitida has temporal memory, and evaluate whether it becomes more accurate over the days, and (ii) to determine whether the behavior of anticipating the offered resource presents intra-individual consistency in the behavior of foragers. The visitation of the bees was high before and during the opening interval of the food resource, but rare after the closing, suggesting that M. subnitida has the ability to memorize the time of availability of the resource, increasing the accuracy over the days, with bees anticipating their visits in relation to the time they discovered the resource, and the opening time of the resource. There was individual consistency in the behavior of food-anticipatory activity, with the presence of bees that consistently anticipated in relation to the opening time of the resource (inspectors) and bees that consistently did not anticipate (reactivated forager) . By anticipating the search for a resource, foragers allow the group to exploit it effectively, as they exploit it in the first hours of its opening, and foragers that never anticipate avoid unnecessary risks of predation and energy expenditure.
{"title":"Temporal Memory in Foraging of the Stingless Bee Melipona subnitida (Hymenoptera: Apidae: Meliponini)","authors":"Albeane Guimarães Silva, G. C. Carvalho, Ana Catarina De Miranda, F. Contrera, M. Rêgo","doi":"10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5863","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5863","url":null,"abstract":"Bees feed on nectar and pollen, however these resources are often available to floral visitors during restricted temporal windows. The presence of temporal memory is an advantage, as foragers can save energy by scheduling their flight activity to coincide with peaks of nectar secretion in the flowers or at times of higher sugar concentration in the nectar. Thus, the objectives of this study were (i) to investigate whether Melipona subnitida has temporal memory, and evaluate whether it becomes more accurate over the days, and (ii) to determine whether the behavior of anticipating the offered resource presents intra-individual consistency in the behavior of foragers. The visitation of the bees was high before and during the opening interval of the food resource, but rare after the closing, suggesting that M. subnitida has the ability to memorize the time of availability of the resource, increasing the accuracy over the days, with bees anticipating their visits in relation to the time they discovered the resource, and the opening time of the resource. There was individual consistency in the behavior of food-anticipatory activity, with the presence of bees that consistently anticipated in relation to the opening time of the resource (inspectors) and bees that consistently did not anticipate (reactivated forager) . By anticipating the search for a resource, foragers allow the group to exploit it effectively, as they exploit it in the first hours of its opening, and foragers that never anticipate avoid unnecessary risks of predation and energy expenditure.","PeriodicalId":21971,"journal":{"name":"Sociobiology","volume":"68 1","pages":"5863"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2021-05-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"48424355","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-05-20DOI: 10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5922
Tarcísio Marcos Macedo Mota Filho, K. K. Sousa, R. S. Camargo, J. V. L. C. Oliveira, N. Caldato, D. Zeppelini, L. C. Forti
Cyphoderus innominatus Mills, 1938 (Collembola: Paronellidae) was first observed in early colonies of Atta sexdens leaf-cutting ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). The colonies were collected on February 6, 2019, from a transition area between the Atlantic Forest and the Cerrado, located in the municipality of Botucatu, Sao Paulo, Brazil. A total of four colonies collected had an average population density of 227 ± 212 C. innominatus individuals, and most of the latter were found in peripheral areas inside the fungus-garden-growing chamber of the colony. In addition, we observed a possible defensive behavior on the part of workers when C. innominatus individuals were present in the fungus garden chamber. Thus, this is the first record of C. innominatus living in association with early colonies of A. sexdens .
{"title":"First record of Cyphoderus innominatus Mills, 1938 (Collembola: Paronellidae) in Early Colonies of the Leaf-cutting Ant Atta sexdens","authors":"Tarcísio Marcos Macedo Mota Filho, K. K. Sousa, R. S. Camargo, J. V. L. C. Oliveira, N. Caldato, D. Zeppelini, L. C. Forti","doi":"10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5922","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.13102/SOCIOBIOLOGY.V68I2.5922","url":null,"abstract":"Cyphoderus innominatus Mills, 1938 (Collembola: Paronellidae) was first observed in early colonies of Atta sexdens leaf-cutting ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). The colonies were collected on February 6, 2019, from a transition area between the Atlantic Forest and the Cerrado, located in the municipality of Botucatu, Sao Paulo, Brazil. A total of four colonies collected had an average population density of 227 ± 212 C. innominatus individuals, and most of the latter were found in peripheral areas inside the fungus-garden-growing chamber of the colony. In addition, we observed a possible defensive behavior on the part of workers when C. innominatus individuals were present in the fungus garden chamber. Thus, this is the first record of C. innominatus living in association with early colonies of A. sexdens .","PeriodicalId":21971,"journal":{"name":"Sociobiology","volume":"68 1","pages":"5922"},"PeriodicalIF":0.9,"publicationDate":"2021-05-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43630251","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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