Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Army ants represent the greatest development of this foraging behaviour and are
distinguished by a combination of frequent nest movement and the behavioural traits
of group foraging and group prey retrieval (Gotwald, 1995)
.
These ants send out very
large numbers of workers and, through their co-ordinated activities, can subdue large
prey items such as cockroaches, earthworms and even small vertebrates such as frogs.
The food items are then subdivided where necessary and transported back to the nests,
also through the concerted actions of multiple workers.
Foraging activity is dependent on current environmental conditions. Many ants
forage within a temperature:humidity envelope and this is illustrated in Figure III.56
