Hydrocarbons on Harvester Ant (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Pogonomyrmex barbatus</Emphasis>) Middens Guide Foragers to the Nest |
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Authors: | Shelby J Sturgis Michael J Greene Deborah M Gordon |
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Affiliation: | (1) Department of Biology, Stanford University, 371 Serra Mall Gilbert Building rm. 410, Stanford, CA 94305–5020, USA;(2) Department of Integrative Biology, University of Colorado Denver, PO Box 173364, Denver, CO 80217–3364, USA |
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Abstract: | Colony-specific cuticular hydrocarbons are used by social insects in nestmate recognition. Here, we showed that hydrocarbons
found on the mound of Pogonomyrmex barbatus nests facilitate the return of foragers to the nest. Colony-specific hydrocarbons, which ants use to distinguish nestmates
from non-nestmates, are found on the midden pebbles placed on the nest mound. Midden hydrocarbons occur in a concentration
gradient, growing stronger near the nest entrance, which is in the center of a 1–2 m diameter nest mound. Foraging behavior
was disrupted when the gradient of hydrocarbons was altered experimentally. When midden material was diluted with artificial
pebbles lacking the colony-specific hydrocarbons, the speed of returning foragers decreased significantly. The chemical environment
of the nest mound contributes to the regulation of foraging behavior in harvester ants. |
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