Temporal dynamics of scout release-behavior of termitophagous ponerine ant, Megaponera analis

Abstract

Megaponera analis is an obligate termitophagous species endemic to sub-Saharan Africa. The species forages by sending out scouts to search for termites. Once termites are located, the scouts return to the nest and recruit nest mates. Scouts face unpredictable environmental conditions, including sudden flooding, temperature changes, high winds and predation by natural enemies. We observed 519 scouting trips from 18 different colonies over three years to determine how long it takes for the colony to replace a scout that has likely died while on scouting duty or is lost due to environmental perturbations. Study areas were at Maremani, Musina, Masebe and D’nyala Nature Reserves in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. We introduced definitions of scouting turnover, scouting trip, and scouting session. Scouting turnover is the time it takes a successive scout to leave the nest for a trip, whereas a scouting trip is the journey a scout takes from the nest in search of food. Since M. analis shows bimodal foraging behavior, the morning observations were recorded as the first scouting session, while the subsequent session, which starts in the afternoon, was recorded as the second scouting session. The mean scouting turnover for all 519 trips was 9.36 ± 0.64 (SD) minutes. When turnover was divided into sessions, the first scouting session lasted a mean of 7.77 ± 12.17 (SD) minutes, while the second had 10.34 ± 18.32 (SD) minutes. The minimum turnover was zero minutes, and the maximum was 124 minutes.