Cooperative colony founding and experimental primary polygyny in the ponerine ant Pachycondyla villosa

1998 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 267-276 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. Trunzer ◽  
J. Heinze ◽  
B. Hölldobler
Keyword(s):  
Colony Founding ◽  
Primary Polygyny ◽  
Ponerine Ant

Genomic architecture and evolutionary dynamics of a social niche polymorphism in the California harvester ant,Pogonomyrmex californicus

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammed Errbii ◽  
Ulrich R. Ernst ◽  
Aparna Lajmi ◽  
Jürgen Gadau ◽  
Lukas Schrader
Keyword(s):  
Evolutionary Dynamics ◽  
Population Genomics ◽  
Colony Founding ◽  
Genetic Admixture ◽  
Primary Polygyny ◽  
Pogonomyrmex Californicus ◽  
Harvester Ant ◽  
Genomic Regions ◽  
Two Populations ◽  
Social Niche

AbstractThe societies of social insects are highly variable, including variation in the number of reproductives in a colony. In the California harvester ant,Pogonomyrmex californicus(Buckley 1867), colonies are commonly founded by a single queen (haplometrosis, primary monogyny). However, in some populations in California (USA), two or more queens cooperate in colony founding (pleometrosis) and continue to share a nest over several years (primary polygyny). Here, we use population genomics and linkage mapping to study the evolutionary dynamics and genetic architecture of this social niche polymorphism. Our analyses show that both populations underwent consecutive bottlenecks over the last 100,000 generations, particularly decreasing population size in the P-population and that the two populations diverged until 1,000 generations ago, after which gene flow increased again and we found signs of recent genetic admixture between the two populations. We further uncover an 8 Mb non-recombining region segregating with the observed social niche polymorphism, showing characteristics of a supergene comparable to the ones underlying social niche polymorphism in other ant species. In addition, 57 genes in five genomic regions outside the supergene show signatures of a selective sweep in the P-population, some of which are differentially expressed between haplo- and pleometrotic queens during colony founding. Our findings expose the social niche polymorphism inP. californicusas a polygenic trait involving a supergene.

scholarly journals Prey Status Affects Paralysis Investment in the Ponerine Ant Harpegnathos venator

Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 26
Author(s):  
Lei Nie ◽  
Fei Zhao ◽  
Yiming Chen ◽  
Qian Xiao ◽  
Zhiping Pan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Activity Level ◽  
Food Storage ◽  
Colony Development ◽  
Foraging Mode ◽  
Live Prey ◽  
Ponerine Ants ◽  
Behavioral Mechanism ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Ponerine Ant ◽  
Predatory Insects

The paralysis behavior of some ponerine ants when foraging may be important for food storage and colony development. However, how workers invest in paralysis under different prey circumstances is often overlooked. Here, we report the prey-foraging behavior and paralysis behavior of Harpegnathos venator under different food supply conditions. Solitary hunting was the main foraging mode of H. venator, with occasional simple collective hunting. Nymphal cockroaches with high activity were the most attractive to H. venator. In the experiment, we found that the stings of H. venator completely paralyzed the cockroaches. The stinging time was significantly longer at a higher prey activity level and for larger cockroaches. In addition, there was no significant difference in the stinging time of H. venator for different prey densities. The results showed that the longer similar cockroaches were stung, the longer it took for them to revive and move. These results are helpful for further understanding the behavioral mechanism underlying the food storage of live prey by predatory insects.

scholarly journals Two new species and a revised key to Rhynchomicropteron (Diptera, Phoridae)

1990 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henry Disney
Keyword(s):  
New Species ◽  
Two New Species ◽  
Ponerine Ant ◽  
A New Species

Rhynchomicopteron necaphidiforme sp. n. is described from West Malaysia, where it is associated with a Ponerine ant. The female matures a single egg at atime. Silvestri's (1947) specimen from lndo-China attributed to R. caecutietts Schmitz is recognised as a new species and named R. silvestrii sp. n. A key to the eleven known species of Rhyrtchonticropteron is provided.

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