Foraging trail traffic rules: a new study method of trajectories of the harvester ants.

Harvester ants are one of the most extensively studied groups of ants, especially the group foraging ants, Messor barbarus (Linnaeus, 1767), which construct long-lasting trunk trails. Limited laboratory investigations have delved into head-on encounters along foraging trails involving workers moving in opposing directions, with fewer corresponding studies conducted in the natural environment. To address this gap, we devised an in-field experimental design to induce lane segregation on the foraging trunk trail of M.

Context-dependent insect predation pressure on an avian ectoparasite.

Context dependence arises when ecological relationships vary with the conditions under which they are observed. Context dependence of interactions involving parasites is poorly known, even if it is key to understanding host-parasite relationships and food web dynamics. This paper investigates to which extent predation pressure on an avian ectoparasite (Carnus hemapterus) is context-dependent.

Five new records of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) from Morocco.

A recent catalogue of the rich ant fauna of Morocco included 214 species, with later studies adding an additional 12 species. Following recent fieldwork in the north of Morocco, we report five new records for the country (Plagiolepis pygmaea Latreille, 1798, Ponera testacea Emery, 1895, Strumigenys tenuipilis Emery, 1915, Temnothorax pardoi Tinaut, 1987, and Tetramorium parvioculum Guillem & Bensusan, 2009) and we present new data on the distribution and natural history of six additional species. This work brings the total number of ants known from Morocco to 233, taking into account two species which were omitted in the list of Cagniant.

Optimal Foraging in Seed-Harvester Ants: Computer-Aided Simulation.

This paper presents a computer-aided simulation of foraging behavior in seed-harvester ant species. The simulation is based on regression studies of running speed, net cost of transport, worker size, load mass, and distance. The results show that, as a function of its size, each worker has a maximum transport yield and an upper load limit.