Abstract:
A Formica pergandei colony near Grove City College has been under scientific observation for a number of years. This socially-parasitic species that enslaves other ants in the genus /Formica/ has rarely been studied scientifically. F. pergandei is a parasitic species of ant that has been observed conducting raids on colonies of other ants to steal brood. The captured ant brood is used for food, or it is reared to maturity so that the enslaved adults are added to the parasite colony’s worker force. The F. pergandei colony is itself parasitized by an ichneumonid wasp Elasmosoma schwarzi that hunts hosts by hovering over individual ants until swooping in to lay an egg in the unlucky host’s gaster. As part of that study, slow-motion, close-up video clips of individual F. pergandei ants on their home nest and out on raids revealed two rapid and novel behaviors: a hind leg kick, and a brief lifting of the gaster. These behaviors were analyzed in three separate videos of the same colony, each video representing different situations within the colony. Detailed, frame-by-frame analysis of 11 gaster lifting and 7 leg kicking sequences revealed that the average gaster lift took 41 milliseconds per frame and the average leg kick took 28 milliseconds per frame. The two behaviors are being compared to find potential correlation to each other, and certain situations the colony may experience like parasitism by E. schwarzi.
Team Members
Hannah Leach | (Stephen Jenkins) | Grove City College
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