Foraging Strategies by Colony Size

AntWiki: The Ants --- Online

The following table is from Beckers et al. 1985 (see publication for references in table). It was used to examine how colony size might influence foraging strategies. There is also evidence that colony size influences how honeydew gathering temperate ants forage upon and potentially protect homopterans.

Foraging Type = I Individual, TR Tandem recruitment, GM Group/Mass recruitment, MR Mass recruitment, TT Trunk trail, GH Group hunting

species nest size type references
Acromyrmex landolti 1000 MR Jaffe pers. comm.
Acromyrmex octospinosus 50000 MR Blum et al. 1964; Jaffe pers. comm.
Aenictus laeviceps 85000 GH Schneirla 1965
Aneuretus simoni 40 MR Traniello and Jayasuriya 1981; Jayasuria and Traniello 1985
Cephalotes varians (as Zacryptocerus varians) 1000 MR Wilson 1976; Jaffe pers. comm.
Atta cephalotes 500000 MR Jaffe and Howse 1979; Jaffe pers. comm.
Atta sexdens 5000000 MR Riley et al. 1974; Jaffe pers. comm.
Atta texana 10000000 MR Moser and Blum 1963; Riley et al. 1974; Jaffe pers. comm.
Azteca forelii 50000 MR Jaffe pers. comm.;
Camponotus aethiops 2500 I Suzzoni pers. comm.
Camponotus pennsylvanicus 2200 MR Pricer 1908; Traniello 1977
Camponotus sericeus 250 TR Holldobler et al. 1974
Carebara diversa (as Pheidologeton diversus) 250000 GH Moffet 1988
Carebara overbecki (as Ologomyrmex overbecki) 400 TT Moffet 1986b
Carebara silenus (as Pheidologeton silenus) 100000 GH Moffet 1988
Carebara urichi (as Erebomyrma nevermann) 180 TT Wilson 1986
Cataglyphis bicolor 2000 I Wehner et al. 1983
Cataglyphis cursor 1000 I Cagniant 1983; Lenoir pers. comm.
Colobopsis truncata 50 I Suzzoni pers. comm.
Crematogaster sumichrasti 1000 MR Jaffe pers. comm.
Cyphomyrmex rimosus 100 I Blum et al. 1964; Jaffe pers. comm.
Daceton armigerum 10000 I Blum and Portocarrero 1965; Jaffe pers. comm.
Diacamma rugosum 100 I Fukumoto and Abe 1983
Dinoponera australis 30 I Fowler 1985
Dinoponera quadriceps 60 I Dantas de Araujo pers. comm.
Dorylus nigricans (as Anomma nigricans) 1036800 GH Vosseler 1905
Dorylus wilverthi (as Anomma wilverthi) 20000000 GH Raignier and van Boven 1955
Dorymyrmex biconis (as Conomyrma bicornis) 5000 MR Jaffe pers. comm.
Eciton burchellii 425000 GH Schneirla 1957
Eciton hamatum 300000 GH Schneirla 1957; Rettenmeyer 1963
Eciton rapax 275000 GH Sudd and Franks 1987
Ectatomma ruidum 125 I Lachaud et al. 1984
Formica aquilonia 400000 TT Zakharov 1978
Formica bruni 1400 MR Cherix and Maddalena-Feller 1987
Formica cunicularia 1100 I Deffernez pers. comm.
Formica fusca 500 MR Wallis 1964; Moglich and Holldobler 1975
Formica lugubris 40000 TT Rosengren 1971; Breen 1979
Formica polyctena 450000 TT Rosengren 1971; Kruk-de-Bruin et al. 1977; Horstmann 1982
Formica pratensis 60000 TT Rosengren 1971; Jensen 1977
Formica rufa 4000000 TT Gosswald 1951; Rosengren 1971
Formica yessensis 51000 TT Ito 1973; Cherix 1987
Hypoponera eduardi (as Ponera eduardi) 1500 TR Le Masne 1952; Bernard 1968
Labidus praedator 1000000 GH Rettenmeyer 1963
Lasius fuliginosus 2500000 TT Hainaut-Riche et al. 1980; Quinet et Pasteels 1987
Lasius niger 5500 MR Stradling 1970; Brian 1977
Leptogenys chinensis 367 GH Maschwitz and Schonegge 1983
Leptogenys processionalis (as Leptogenys ocellifera) 50000 MR Maschwitz and Mulenberg 1975
Leptothorax acervorum 250 TR Dobrzanski 1966; Buschinger 1971; Moglich et al. 1974; Moglich 1979
Leptothorax muscorum 300 TR TR Buschinger 1966; Moglich et al. 1974
Linepithema humile (as Iridomyrmex humilis) 150000 MR Keller pers. comm.
Mesoponera caffraria 70 TR Levieux 1967; Agbogba 1981
Messor barbarus 8000 GM Delye pers. comm.
Messor sanctus 3500 GM Delye pers. comm.; Suzzoni pers. comm.
Monomorium pharaonis 800 MR Peacock et al. 1955; Sudd 1960
Mycetomoellerius urichii (as Trachymyrmex urichii) 100 MR Jaffe and Villegas 1985; Jaffe pers. comm.
Myrmecia gulosa 900 I Haskins and Haskins 1950; Robertson 1971
Myrmica rubra 1000 GM Stradling 1970; Petal 1972; Cammaerts and Cammaerts 1980
Myrmica ruginodis 2000 GM Stradling 1970, Brian 1972; Cammaerts and Cammaerts 1980
Myrmica sabuleti 3000 MR Brian 1972; Cammaerts and Cammaerts 1980
Myrmicaria natalensis eumenoides (as Myrmicaria eumenoides) 20000 MR Levieux 1983
Myrmoteras barbouri 8 I Moffet 1986a
Myrmoteras toro 22 I Moffet 1986a
Neivamyrmex nigrescens 30000 GH Topoffet al. 1980
Neoponera apicalis 90 I Lachaud et al. 1984; Fresneau 1985
Neoponera commutata 400 GM Mill 1982, 1984
Neoponera obscuricornis 100 I Traniello and Holldobler 1984; Fresneau 1984
Neoponera villosa 500 I Lachaud et al. 1984; Lachaud pers. comm.
Novomessor albisetosus 350 MR Holldobler et al. 1978.
Novomessor cockerelli 350 MR Holldobler et al. 1978.
Ocymyrmex barbiger 200 MR Marsh 1985
Odontomachus bauri 300 I Jaffe and Marcuse 1983
Odontomachus haematodus 500 TR Holldobler and Engel 1978; Jaffe pers. comm.
Odontomachus troglodytes 240 TR Dejean 1982; et al. 1964; Dejean and Bashingwa 1985
Oecophylla longinoda 480000 MR Way 1954; Holldobler and Wilson 1978
Ophthalmopone berthoudi 400 I Peeters and Crewe 1987
Pheidole embolopyx 300 MR Wilson and Holldobler 1985
Pheidole fallax 10000 MR Law et al. 1965; Jaffe pers. comm.
Pheidole pallidula 5000 MR Detrain pers. comm.
Pogonomyrmex badius 4300 MR Brian et al. 1967; Holldobler and Wilson 1970
Pogonomyrmex californicus 4500 MR Holldobler and Wilson 1970; Erickson 1972
Pogonomyrmex occidentalis 3880 MR Lavigne 1969; Holldobler and Wilson 1970
Proatta butteli 10000 MR Moffet 1986c
Pseudomyrmex termitarius 75 TR Jaffe pers. comm.
Pseudomyrmex triplarinus 10000 TR Jaffe pers. comm.
Solenopsis invicta 100000 MR Wilson 1962; Tschinkel 1987
Stigmatomma pallipes (as Amblyopone pallipes) 15 I Traniello 1978; Lachaud pers. comm.
Strumigenys lujae (as Serrastruma lujae) 57 I Dejean 1982
Strumigenys serrula (as Serrastruma serrula) 78 I Dejean 1982
Strumigenys emarginata (as Smithistruma emarginata) 199 I Dejean 1982
Strumigenys truncatidens (as Smithistruma truncatidens) 133 I Dejean 1982
Tapinoma erraticum 1000 MR Meudec 1979; Verhaeghe et al. 1980
Temnothorax ambiguus (as Leptothorax ambiguus) 50 TR Talbot 1965; Moglich 1979
Temnothorax curvispinosus (as Leptothorax curvispinosus) 50 TR Headley 1943; Talbot 1965; Moglich 1979
Temnothorax duloticus (as Leptothorax duloticus) 12 TR Talbot 1957; Alloway 1979; Moglich 1979
Temnothorax longispinosus (as Leptothorax longispinosus) 65 TR Headley 1943
Temnothorax nylanderi (as Leptothorax nylanderi) 280 TR Plateau pers. comm.
Temnothorax unifasciatus (as Leptothorax unifasciatus) 325 TR Lane 1977; Plateau pers. comm.
Tetramorium caespitum 14000 GM Brian et al. 1967; Pasteels et al. 1987

References