Sagehen Creek Field Station

18 Jul, 08 AM - 01 Aug, 04 AM

To maintain the integrity of their colonies, social insects have evolved advanced recognition systems that allow them to distinguish nestmates from non-nestmates. This discriminatory ability is achieved by antennal detection of chemical cues, or ?labels?, found on the exoskeletons of insects. Cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) are solid-phase, waxy compounds often implicated as the labels used in the nestmate recognition of social insects, including ants. Social parasites, however, have found a way to exploit the recognition system of their host. Slave-making ants in the genus Polyergus are obligate social parasites that rely on their host (genus Formica) for nest maintenance, brood care and foraging. The parasites acquire their supply of slaves by stealing and bringing back worker pupae from neighboring Formica colonies. Thus individuals from several different Formica colonies live in the same nest as their Polyergus slave-makers. One way Polyergus slave-makers may facilitate the cohesiveness of their mixed-species colonies is by mimicking the chemical labels (CHCs) present on the exoskeletons of their slaves. This strategy of chemical mimicry is particularly interesting when more than one species of host is available for the social parasite to enslave. Field observations have shown that when Polyergus has the opportunity to choose between multiple hosts, it will only enslave one species at a time. The proposed research will investigate a population of Polyergus breviceps that enslaves either Formica fusca or Formica argentea in the forest of Sagehen Creek Field station in California. I will examine the CHCs of Polyergus that parasitize these two different species of Formica to see if there is evidence for chemical adaptation to their hosts by mimicry. Additionally, I will look at the genetic structure of this Polyergus population to determine if there is genetic evidence of host specialization.

Visit #21733 @Sagehen Creek Field Station

Approved

Under Project # 21909 | Research

Chemical and molecular ecology of the slave-making ant, Polyergus breviceps, socially parasitizing two species of the genus, Formica: Is there evidence for host specificity?

graduate_student - University of California, Berkeley

Reservation Members(s)

Candice Torres Jul 18 - Aug 1, 2010 (15 days)
Group of 2 Undergraduate Student Jul 18 - Aug 1, 2010 (15 days)

Reserve Resources(s) | Create Invoice

Classroom 3 Jul 18 - Aug 1, 2010
East Cabin (Lower Camp) 3 Jul 18 - Aug 1, 2010
Lab / Classroom 3 Jul 18 - Aug 1, 2010
Treehouse(Lower Camp) 3 Jul 18 - Aug 1, 2010
West Cabin (Lower Camp) 3 Jul 18 - Aug 1, 2010