Rustling ants: Vibrational communication performed by two Camponotus species in Borneo.

Autor: Bota JL; Zoological Institute and Museum, University of Greifswald, Loitzer-Str. 26, 17489, Greifswald, Germany., Schöner MG; Zoological Institute and Museum, University of Greifswald, Loitzer-Str. 26, 17489, Greifswald, Germany; Sensory and Cognitive Ecology, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Gamboa, Panama., Schöner CR; Zoological Institute and Museum, University of Greifswald, Loitzer-Str. 26, 17489, Greifswald, Germany., Eberhard MJB; Zoological Institute and Museum, University of Greifswald, Loitzer-Str. 26, 17489, Greifswald, Germany. Electronic address: monika.eberhard@uni-greifswald.de.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Arthropod structure & development [Arthropod Struct Dev] 2022 Sep; Vol. 70, pp. 101172. Date of Electronic Publication: 2022 Jul 07.
DOI: 10.1016/j.asd.2022.101172
Abstrakt: Interactions between ants and plants are classic examples of cooperation between individuals of different species. Usually, plants provide shelter or food for ants and in turn are defended against herbivores by their insect allies. To coordinate attacks, ants use multi-modal alarm signals consisting of vibrational and chemical components. This can also be observed in Borneo, where two Camponotus species inhabit the ocreas (diverging, tubular leaf sheaths) of the rattan palm Korthalsia robusta. When ants are disturbed, they beat or scratch mandibles and abdomens on the plant surface resulting in loud rustling sounds. To describe the characteristics of these signals, we recorded them with a Laser-Doppler-vibrometer in the field. Analyses of temporal patterns and dominant frequency revealed that the signals of the two species differ fundamentally. To assess transmission characteristics of the rattan palm, we conducted experiments under controlled lab-conditions. We show that the ocrea is an adequate structure for converting airborne sound into substrate vibrations, acting as a mediator between these two modalities. We hypothesize that the ants' vibratory signal has multiple functions, with the substrate-borne component used as an alarm signal for conspecifics, and the airborne component acting as vibro-acoustic aposematism against predators or herbivores to protect the host plant.
(Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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