Alate gyne of the ant Dolichoderus quadripunctatus (L.) (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) follows foraging trail to aphids

Abstract

The first observation of alate gyne of Dolichoderus quadripunctatus (L.) visiting aphids is described. A gyne walked along a foraging trail to the aphid Panaphis juglandis Goeze colony where it imbibed honeydew excreted on the leaf by the aphids, after which it returned to the trail. This recurred during two more days, always a single alate gyne at a time; hence the total number of gynes, one or more, remained open. The phenomenon, hitherto practically unknown in ants, is presented against the background of the biology of the species and discussed in the context of specific environmental circumstances and the colony dynamics.

Ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) ‐ aphid (Hemiptera: Aphididae) interactions in different habitats from Turkey with new mutualistic associations

“…oxycedri is recorded for the first time. There are reports of associations between D. quadripunctatus and some aphid species belonging to genus Aphis , Betulaphis , Brachycaudus , Calaphis , Callipterinella , Cavariella , Chaitophorus , Chromaphis , Cinara ( C. pini , C. pinea and C. pilosa ), Drepanosiphum , Eucallipterus , Euceraphis , Lachnus , Myzocallis , Myzus , Panaphis , Periphyllus , Pterocomma , Schizaphis , Stomaphis, Thelaxes , Tuberculatus and Tuberolachnus from Poland and Ukraine (Stukalyuk, 2018; Czechowski et al ., 2019; Stukalyuk et al ., 2019).…”

Intricacies of the Biology of Dolichoderus quadripunctatus (L.) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

“…Alate gynes of our study colonies walk regularly and often in high numbers along the foraging trails of the workers. We (Czechowski et al 2019(Czechowski et al , 2022 suggested that the function of such behaviour could be the dispersal of gynes within a network of trails and nests to a queenless worker colony, to be adopted there. Such dispersal could occasionally transgress the boundaries of the polycalic natal colony, within a supercolony like that described by Stukalyuk (2018), and ultimately contribute to the expansion of the supercolony.…”

“…The research site was the same as in our previous studies (Czechowski et al 2019(Czechowski et al , 2022): a property within an area of loose single-family housing in Brwinów (52°08'N, 20°43'E), Central Poland. This time we observed three colonies of Dolichoderus quadripunctatus (I, II, III) from July 13 to July 30, 2022 and added three control inspections: on August 23, September 5-6, and September 15, 2022.…”

“…Lately, field studies have tested established views and added to the still poorly understood bionomy of this species. Recently we (Czechowski et al 2019(Czechowski et al , 2022 reported on alate gynes which left the nest, to follow the trails of foraging workers. We interpreted this unique gyne behaviour as a specific means of dispersal of potential young queens to queenless auxiliary nests, drawing on Stukalyuk's (2018) study, which described polydomous colonies (and a supercolony) of D. quadripunctatus with networks of foraging trails among the nests.…”

First Report on the Acrobat Ant Crematogaster scutellaris Storing Live Aphids in Its Oak-Gall Nests

“…After egg hatching in spring, the P. juglandis foundress produces large numbers of alate viviparae which colonize the upper sides of walnut leaves along the veins [ 51 , 52 ]. P. juglandis aphids is reported to engage in mutualistic relationships with several species of ants that frequently antennate them to encourage honeydew production [ 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 ]. Moreover, ants even seem to be involved in the protection of this species from damage indirectly caused by other aphids such as Chromaphis juglandicola (Kaltenbach, 1843).…”