Foraging ecology and visual cues of the ant Dinoponera australis

HANISCH, P; TILLBERG, C. V.; TUBARO, P. L.; SUAREZ, A.

Exeter

Congreso; ISBE 2016; 2016

International Society for Behavioral Ecology

We evaluated foraging behavior and trophic ecology of Dinoponera australis in subtropical forests in Argentina. We found that D. australis colonies are over dispersed, and the species reaches a wet biomass of more than 2.5 kg/ha. Workers exhibit relatively high degrees of route fidelity, with different individuals specializing on different areas around the nest. Data from stable isotopes of Nitrogen and from direct observations of foraging success suggest these ants are among the top predators in this terrestrial invertebrate community. We tested the hypothesis that D. australis foragers use visual cues for orientation by setting up an arena in the field with mobile visual cues. Foraging routes were mapped for individually marked workers before and after the visual cues were moved. Together these data provide insight into the biology of one of the world?s largest ants and why they may be able to attain such high densities.