Nest Site Selection during Colony Relocation in Yucatan Peninsula Populations of the Ponerine Ants Neoponera villosa (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).

Franklin H Rocha,Gabriela Pérez-Lachaud,Jean-Paul Lachaud,Carmen Pozo,Yann Hénaut

doi:10.3390/insects11030200

Abstract

In the Yucatan Peninsula, the ponerine ant Neoponera villosa nests almost exclusively in tank bromeliads, Aechmea bracteata. In this study, we aimed to determine the factors influencing nest site selection during nest relocation which is regularly promoted by hurricanes in this area. Using ants with and without previous experience of Ae. bracteata, we tested their preference for refuges consisting of Ae. bracteata leaves over two other bromeliads, Ae. bromeliifolia and Ananas comosus. We further evaluated bromeliad-associated traits that could influence nest site selection (form and size). Workers with and without previous contact with Ae. bracteata significantly preferred this species over others, suggesting the existence of an innate attraction to this bromeliad. However, preference was not influenced by previous contact with Ae. bracteata. Workers easily discriminated between shelters of Ae. bracteata and A. comosus, but not those of the closely related Ae. bromeliifolia. In marked contrast, ants discriminated between similar sized Ae. bracteata and Ae. bromeliifolia plants, suggesting that chemical cues and plant structure play an important role. Size was also significant as they selected the largest plant when provided two dissimilar Ae. bracteata plants. Nest site selection by N. villosa workers seems to depend on innate preferences but familiarization with plant stimuli is not excluded.

Highlights

Many species of social hymenoptera frequently move to new nests sites, emigration presents significant challenges and risks [1,2], and often implies a fitness cost [3,4]
Our research addressed the following questions: (1) Do N. villosa workers have an innate preference for Ae. bracteata? (2) Is the preference modulated by the preimaginal or neonatal ant experience linked to the origin of the colony? (3) Are the recognition and localization of
Our experiments provide a similar example of innate attraction of N. villosa workers towards the bromeliad Ae. bracteata

Summary

Introduction

Many species of social hymenoptera frequently move to new nests sites, emigration presents significant challenges and risks [1,2], and often implies a fitness cost [3,4]. Arboreal ants are prone to move their colonies from one site to another [1] as occurs commonly in the Neotropical ponerine ant, Neoponera villosa (Fabricius). Neoponera villosa is a generalist arboreal predatory ant [18,19,20] with a wide geographical distribution, from Texas to Argentina [21]. This species occurs both in wet and dry forests [22] and is an opportunistic cavity breeder that nests in dead and live trees, and in bromeliads [17,23,24]. In the southern part of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico, N. villosa nests mainly in the epiphytic bromeliad Aechmea bracteata

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