Links between worker polymorphism and thermal biology in a thermophilic ant species
Links between worker polymorphism and thermal biology in a thermophilic ant species
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DOI：
10.2307/3545608
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发表时间：
1997-04-01
期刊：
影响因子：
3.4
通讯作者：
Retana, J
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Cerda, X;Retana, J
本文讨论了喜热蚁广义多态工蚁等级的作用。两种不同的假设已经得到了验证：1)工蜂多态性允许蚁群更快、更高效地收集不同大小的猎物；2)这意味着对温度的响应具有更大的变异性，从而增加了外部活动的总体周期，并提高了群体的成功率。工蜂多态性与体型匹配之间的关系没有得到数据的证实：与小型觅食工蜂相比，大工蜂既没有按比例也没有绝对重的负载，它们也没有比小型觅食工蜂收集更多的猎物或更高的效率，它们只是在觅食行程的百分比减少时比小型觅食工蜂更有效。另一方面，金丝桃工蜂的耐热性与尺寸有关，体型较大的工蜂比体型较小的工蜂耐温高6 ~ 8℃。这导致了一种昼夜节律，即一天中不同时间在巢外觅食的工蚁的平均大小随着温度的升高而增加。小工蚁在温度较低时优先觅食，而大工蚁在温度较高时优先觅食。在群体水平上，这导致了较长的日活动周期，并增加了黄褐蝽群体的猎物收集效益。从这个角度来看，大的牛角蚁代表了一个特殊的群体，它们优先在较小的工蚁无法忍受的温度下觅食。
The role of the broadly polymorphic worker caste of the thermophilic ant Cataglyphis velox is discussed. Two different hypotheses have been tested: 1) worker polymorphism allows colonies to collect different-sized prey more quickly and with greater energetic efficiency; 2) it implies greater variability of responses to temperature, which increases the overall period of external activity, and enhances colony success. The relationship between worker polymorphism and size matching was not confirmed by the data: large C. velox workers retrieved neither proportionately nor absolutely heavier loads than did small foragers, they did not collect greater amounts of prey or with greater efficiency than smaller foragers, and they were only more effective than smaller ones in a reduced percentage of their foraging trips. On the other hand, thermal tolerance of C. velox workers was size-related: large workers withstood temperatures 6 to 8 degrees C higher than smaller ones. This led to a diurnal rhythm in which the mean size of workers foraging outside the nest al different times of the day increased with temperature. Small workers foraged preferentially when temperatures were lower, while large workers preferentially foraged at high temperatures. At the colony level, this resulted in a longer daily activity period, and an increased benefit in prey collection for C. velox colonies. From this point of view, large C. velox workers represent a specialized group which preferentially forages at temperatures that smaller workers cannot tolerate.