Performance and efficiency in leaf transport: unveiling the task allocation puzzle in Acromyrmex subterraneus

IF 1.9 2区 生物学 Q3 BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES
Antônio Marcos Oliveira Toledo, Arthur Zimerer, Juliane Floriano Santos Lopes
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Abstract

The performance of ant workers in a given task can be highly variable, generating a non-homogenous workload in the colony. However, there is no information on whether high performance workers are more efficient, or have any morphometric and physiological variation that causes them to both start earlier and continue executing the task longer. Here, we demonstrate that non-homogeneous task distribution is common in small colonies and that different performance levels occur even among Acromyrmex subterraneus workers of the same size class. High Activity workers did more work and were faster, so they were more efficient than Low Activity workers. However, their efficiency was not related to their leg length, as it was for Low Activity workers. Also, the delay of the first loaded trip of High Activity workers was shorter than that of Low Activity workers, indicating an earlier response of the former to the task. Delay variation was not affected by mass-specific metabolic rate. Considering the first five trips, we found that the first trip had a longer duration than the others, and High Activity workers were faster than Low Activity workers, suggesting that the higher efficiency of High Activity workers may be related to the reinforcement mechanism, which in turn lessens their response threshold to the task. Finally, workers had similar mandible morphometry (length of the first and second tooth, number of teeth), and body mass components (water content, lean dry weight and lipid content) despite their activity category, indicating that these variables did not explain differences in performance or efficiency among workers. The hypometric mass scaling metabolic rate showed that Non-transporters had proportionally lower energy expenditure than other categories. High Activity workers showed remarkable performance, efficiency, and faster responses to foraging stimulus. We suggest that this heightened level of individual proficiency is in line with the threshold model, explaining the operation of the task allocation mechanism within the same worker size class.

Abstract Image

叶片运输的性能和效率:揭开亚特兰毛蟹任务分配之谜
蚂蚁工蚁在某项任务中的表现可能千差万别,从而在蚁群中产生不均匀的工作量。然而,目前还没有任何信息表明高绩效的工蚁是否更有效率,或者它们的形态和生理变化是否会导致它们更早地开始执行任务并持续更长时间。在这里,我们证明了在小型蚁群中非均质的任务分配是很常见的,而且即使是同一体型等级的亚特兰蛙工蚁也会出现不同的表现水平。高活跃度工蚁做的工作更多,速度更快,因此它们比低活跃度工蚁更有效率。不过,它们的效率与腿长无关,而低活动量工蚁的效率则与腿长有关。此外,高活动量工人第一次装载的延迟时间比低活动量工人短,这表明前者对任务的反应更早。延迟变化不受特定质量代谢率的影响。考虑到前五个行程,我们发现第一个行程的持续时间比其他行程长,而且高活动量工蚁比低活动量工蚁更快,这表明高活动量工蚁更高的效率可能与强化机制有关,强化机制进而降低了它们对任务的反应阈值。最后,尽管有不同的活动类别,但工蚁的下颚形态测量(第一和第二颗牙齿的长度、牙齿数量)和体质量成分(含水量、瘦干重和脂质含量)相似,这表明这些变量并不能解释工蚁之间的表现或效率差异。低计量质量缩放代谢率表明,非运输者的能量消耗比其他类别低。高活动量工蚁表现出色,效率高,对觅食刺激的反应更快。我们认为,这种个体熟练程度的提高符合阈值模型,可以解释同一工人体型类别中任务分配机制的运作。
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来源期刊
CiteScore
3.90
自引率
8.70%
发文量
146
审稿时长
3 months
期刊介绍: The journal publishes reviews, original contributions and commentaries dealing with quantitative empirical and theoretical studies in the analysis of animal behavior at the level of the individual, group, population, community, and species.
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