The Florida harvester ant, Pogonomyrmex badius collects the seeds of many plant species and stores them in underground nest chambers for later consumption. Seeds taken from multiple nests in 1989, 2014 and 2015 were separated by size and species and identified through published keys, comparison with herbarium specimens and with identified seed collections. Harvester ants stored at least 58 spec...

This paper reports on an investigation of the patrolling system of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis inuicta. Most research on the behavior of ants outside the nest has been concerned with foraging, the search for and retrieval of food. Patrolling or scouting behavior in ants has not received as much attention, but it has been observed in several species (e.g. HoLLDOBLER, 1981; H6LLDOBLER &...

In this paper we describe an individual-based model to account for the growth and morphogenesis of networks of galleries in the ant Messor sancta. The activity of the individuals depends only on their local perception of the immediate surroundings. Coordination between ants arises from the modifications of the environment resulting from their activity: the removal of sand pellets and a pheromon...

Ants are well-known for their amazing load carriage performances. Yet, the biomechanics of locomotion during transport in these insects has so far been poorly investigated. Here, we present a study unloaded and loaded polymorphic seed-harvesting ant Messor barbarus (Linnaeus, 1767). This species is characterized by strong intra-colonial size polymorphism with allometric relationships between di...

Desert ecosystems are more complex than expected and, in this type of habitat, interspecific interactions can be an important force structuring the community. In this paper we described an interaction appearing between an harvester ant species (Messor bouvieri) and several arthropod taxa feeding on ant-nest debris in a southern European arid land. We have found 23 arthropod taxa associated with...

Social insects use odors as cues for a variety of behavioral responses, including nestmate recognition. Past research on nestmate recognition indicates cuticular hydrocarbons are important nestmate discriminators for social insects, but other factors are likely to contribute to colony-specific odors. Here we experimentally tested whether external microbes contribute to nestmate recognition in r...

Harvester ants often selectively forage seeds, causing these to be viewed as pests in agricultural areas where they may on crop seeds. While little research has been done harvester ant preferences for cover grower observations the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) suggest that remove seeds before germination. We examined red (Pogonomyrmex barbatus F. Smith) (fescue, oat, sunn hemp, radish, vetch, ...