Convergent evolution of levee building behavior among distantly related ant species in a floodplain ant assemblage |
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Authors: | E G LeBrun M Moffett D A Holway |
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Institution: | (1) Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Section of Integrative Biology, University of Texas at Austin, 2907 Lake Austin Blvd, Austin, TX 78703, USA;(2) Department of Entomology, NMNH, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, USA;(3) Division of Biological Sciences, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA |
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Abstract: | Flooding impacts ground nesting ant colonies by destroying the infrastructure housing and organizing societal function. Here,
we report the convergent evolution in distantly related ant species of a behavioral trait that minimizes costs of flooding:
the construction of earthen levees around nest entrances. In a South American floodplain ecosystem, we observed five ant species
constructing prominent earthen berms encircling nest entrances shortly after large rainfall events. In four of these species,
experimental flooding of nests demonstrated that earthen berms sufficed to prevent floodwaters from entering the below ground
portions of the nest. Additional manipulations revealed that levee breaching caused, pronounced, and extended reductions in
food collection for two distantly related species. Foraging was preempted by the allocation of workers to repair the internal
structure of the nest. These findings represent convergent evolution of a functionally important nest construction behavior
in response to comparable selective forces. |
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