Publications by authors named "T J Czaczkes"

Insect populations are declining globally. A major driver of this decline is land use change, including urbanisation. However, urban environments can also offer a wide range of floral resources to pollinators, through ornamental plantings, but these can vary widely in their attractiveness to insects.

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Article Synopsis
  • Argentine ants are a problematic invasive species, and existing control methods often fail due to insufficient bait consumption.
  • Research shows that using caffeine can enhance the ants' learning and navigation skills, leading to better recruitment for toxic baits.
  • Experiments revealed that moderate caffeine levels significantly increased the ants' foraging speed, while high doses negated these benefits, suggesting that caffeine could improve bait effectiveness without affecting their homing behavior.
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Changes in habitat characteristics are known to have profound effects on biotic communities and their functional traits. In the context of an urban-rural gradient, urbanisation drastically alters abiotic characteristics, e.g.

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Invasive ants, such as the Argentine ant, pose a severe economic and ecological threat. Despite advancements in baiting techniques, effectively managing established ant populations remains a daunting challenge, often ending in failure. Ant colonies employ behavioural immunity against pathogens, raising the question of whether ants can collectively respond to toxic baits.

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Background: Invasive ants, such as Linepithema humile (the Argentine ant), pose a global threat, necessitating a better understanding of their behaviour in order to improve management strategies. Traditional eradication methods, including baiting, have had limited success, but the causes of control failure are not always clear. This study aims to investigate whether ants form associations between food odours and corpses, and subsequently avoid areas or food sources with food odours associated with corpses.

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