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Foraging ecology of two chihuahuan desert ant species:Novomessor cockerelli andNovomessor albisetosus

Les conditions écologiques de récolte chez deux espèces de fourmis du désert:Novemessor cockerelli etNovomessor albisetosus

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Summary

Novomessor albisetosus andN. cockerelli foraged most intensively in the evening and morning at soil surface temperatures between 20°C and 40°C. They were not active in the middle of the night and mid-day. In both species, colonies provided with supplementary seeds increased their foraging intensity.N. cockerelli colonies which we provided with high protein food (tuna fish) extended their foraging time and remained active until soil surface temperatures reached lethal levels. Nearly half of the natural forage ofN. cockerelli was insects or insect parts which accounted for only 6.6% of the forage ofN. albisetosus. Approximately 10% of the workers ofN. cockerelli entered and were apparently accepted by colonies other then their “home” conoly. This study demonstrates the importance of both forage availability and forage quality as determinants of activity and forage selection ofNovomessor sp.

Resume

Novomessor albisetosus etNovomessor cockerelli ont une activité de récolte plus importante le soir et le matin à la surface du sol, à des températures entre 20° et 40°. Elles ne sont actives ni à midi ni au milieu de la nuit. Les sociétés des deux espèces que nous avons nourries en graines ont augmenté leur activité de récolte. Les colonies deN. cockerelli auxquelles nous avons fourni de la nourriture riche en protéines (du thon) ont prolongé leur temps de récolte et sont restées actives jusqu'à ce que la température du sol atteigne des valeurs mortelles. Presque la moitié de la récolte deN. cockerelli était constituée d'insectes ou de fragments d'insectes, alors que la récolte deN. albisetosus n'en comportait que 6,6%. Environ 10% des ouvrières deN. cockerelli entrèrent et furent apparemment acceptées dans d'autres sociétés que la leur. Cette étude montre que la qualité de la nourriture disponible joue un rôle déterminant dans l'activité de récolte des FourmisNovomessor.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico

    W. G. Whitford

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  1. W. G. Whitford
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  2. E. Depree
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  3. P. Johnson
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Whitford, W.G., Depree, E. & Johnson, P. Foraging ecology of two chihuahuan desert ant species:Novomessor cockerelli andNovomessor albisetosus . Ins. Soc 27, 148–156 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02229250

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02229250

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