Ferguson, S.T.; Bakis, I.; Edwards, N.D.; Zwiebel, L.J. Age and Task Modulate Olfactory Sensitivity in the Florida Carpenter Ant Camponotus floridanus. Insects2023, 14, 724.
Ferguson, S.T.; Bakis, I.; Edwards, N.D.; Zwiebel, L.J. Age and Task Modulate Olfactory Sensitivity in the Florida Carpenter Ant Camponotus floridanus. Insects 2023, 14, 724.
Ferguson, S.T.; Bakis, I.; Edwards, N.D.; Zwiebel, L.J. Age and Task Modulate Olfactory Sensitivity in the Florida Carpenter Ant Camponotus floridanus. Insects2023, 14, 724.
Ferguson, S.T.; Bakis, I.; Edwards, N.D.; Zwiebel, L.J. Age and Task Modulate Olfactory Sensitivity in the Florida Carpenter Ant Camponotus floridanus. Insects 2023, 14, 724.
Abstract
Age-related changes in behavior and sensory perception have been observed in a wide variety of animal species. In ants and other eusocial insects, workers often progress through an ordered sequence of olfactory-driven behavioral tasks. Notably, these behaviors are plastic, and workers adapt and rapidly switch tasks in response to changing environmental conditions. In the Florida carpenter ant, smaller minors typically perform most of the work needed to maintain the colony while the larger majors are specialized for nest defense and rarely engage in these routine tasks. Here, we investigate the effects of age and task group on olfactory responses to a series of odorant blends in minor and major worker castes. Consistent with their respective roles within the colony, we observed significant age-associated shifts in the olfactory responses of minors as they transitioned between behavioral states, whereas the responses of majors remained consistently low regardless of age. Furthermore, we identified a unitary compound, 3-methylindole, which elicited significantly higher responses and behavioral aversion in minor nurses than in similarly aged foragers suggesting that this compound may play an important role in brood care. Taken together, our results suggest that age- and task-associated shifts in olfactory physiology may play a critical role in the social organization of ant colonies.
Keywords
hymenoptera; olfaction; odor coding; task allocation; age polyethism; aging
Subject
Biology and Life Sciences, Insect Science
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
