The Argentine Ant Supercolony essays

The Argentine Ant Supercolony essays No single insect has had a larger influence on the development of mankind than the lowly ant. It has been storied throughout world literature, and even in the greatest of books, the Bible. Proverbs 6:6 states "Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways and be wise." It is said that rose by any other name is still a rose; however, the story is not the same with the ant. One particular species, the Argentine ant, or Iridomyrmex humilis or Linepithema humile, has been revered for its tenacity, especially in defense of the nest. It is even set apart in literature, in Linengen Versus the Ants. This particular species is known mainly for its proliferation and aggressive behavior. These ants often fight to the death when they encounter another colony and drive out other ant species as they proliferate. It seems they are made for this barbaric behavior, as they have large mandibles and a chemical weapon called iridomyr-mecin, which kills enemies or at the very least forces them to retreat. They also have as many as eight queens per thousand workers, which makes them nearly impossible to eradicate, as they reproduce at an astounding rate. "If all of the buildings in the world disappeared, just leaving the (Argentine) ants in the air, you could still see the outlines of the city." But recently, this aggressive, tenacious species is becoming known for so mething else: cooperation. A supercolony, or unicoloniality, is an extraordinary social organization whereby individuals mix freely among physically separated nests. It has been known for a while now that a supercolony of these ants exists in southern California, but until recently, this was thought to be one of a kind. This was proved to be untrue by a group of scientists led by Laurent Keller, and entomologist from the University of Switzerland. It would be easy for one to understand nests cooperating within a few feet, but this supercolony is the largest ever discovered, span...