Metabolic scaling of fire ants (Solenopsis invicta) engaged in collective behaviors.

ABSTRACT: During flash floods, fire ants (Solenopsis invicta Buren) link their bodies together to build rafts to stay afloat, and towers to anchor onto floating vegetation. Can such challenging conditions facilitate synchronization and coordination, resulting in energy savings per capita? To understand how stress affects metabolic rate, we used constant-volume respirometry to measure the metabolism of fire ant workers. Group metabolic rates were measured in a series of conditions: at normal state, at three elevated temperatures, during rafting, and during tower-building. We hypothesized that the metabolic rate of ants at various temperatures would scale isometrically (proportionally with the group mass). Indeed, we found metabolic rates scaled isometrically under all temperature conditions, giving e

SUBMITTER: Ko H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8905630 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature