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[soulsynapse]

Hey guys, I posted this on the subreddit a few months ago but was asked to post it here too! A lot of this is well known, but I wanted to share some resources you guys can point to as the scientific basis for these claims.

 

 

Nests need heat for optimal growth

 

Why it's important to heat a colony: Effect of Temperature on the Development and Survival of the Argentine Ant, Linepithema humile

 

Relevant information:

 

* Effect of temperature on brood survival from egg to adult form.

* Total developmental times from egg to adult worker.

* Duration of the egg stage at different temperatures.

* Effect of temperature on the survival of each of the immature stages

 

Workers live up to 4x longer if ambient temperature is ~17-24c

 

Why it's important to provide a gradient: Worker longevity in the fire ant Solenopsis invicta: Ergonomic considerations of correlations between temperature, size and metabolic rates

 

Relevant information:

 

* Worker longevity compared to size and temperature

Edited by soulsynapse, April 7 2018 - 10:07 AM.

[drtrmiller]

A lot of these findings are with non-native ants from neotropical bioregions.  I wouldn't advise conflating them with native nearctic ants, which have evolved in habitats that experience more variance with respect to temperature over different seasons.

 

I've long hypothesized that the optimal temperature for development is closely aligned with the temperatures at which the ants most engage in nuptial flights.  If you look at the average, I expect you'll find that ants don't fly when temperatures are far outside the range needed for optimal brood development.  In neotropical regions, flights are mostly based on the presence of rain, since the temperatures are generally more stable year round.  In the nearctic and palearctic regions, ants typically fly during certain seasons that correspond to a change in temperature, in addition to the presence of seasonal moisture.

Edited by drtrmiller, April 7 2018 - 10:47 AM.