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Temperature Distribution and Calorimetric Determination of Heat Production in the Nest of the Wood Ant, Formica Polyctena (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)
Author(s) -
Coenen-Stass Dieter,
Schaarschmidt Bernd,
Lamprecht Ingolf
Publication year - 1980
Publication title -
ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.144
H-Index - 294
eISSN - 1939-9170
pISSN - 0012-9658
DOI - 10.2307/1935180
Subject(s) - nest (protein structural motif) , ecology , population , hymenoptera , environmental science , biology , biochemistry , demography , sociology
This paper describes the temperature and population distribution in the nest hill of the wood ant Formica polyctena. Calorimetric and manometric data on the heat production of ants, pupae, and nest material were used to estimate their possible contribution to the heat balance of the nest hill. The pattern of isothermal lines in the nest did not fully correspond with the population distribution. Oxygen consumption and heat production of the worker ants and pupae steadily with arising ambient temperature. Investigations of the nest material showed a rapid increase in oxygen consumption in spring and a slower decrease in autumn. From spring to autumn the heat production of material from the center of the nest was higher than that of peripheral material. Heat production of the nest material originates in microbial activities and is chiefly the result of aerobic metabolism. The mass—specific heat production of ants is clearly higher than that of nest material. However, considering the total mass of the nest, the rate of heat production of the nest material is more than seven times the heat evolved by the ants. The seasonal fluctuation in the heat production of nest material coincides well with the active phase of the ants. It is conceivable that the nest materials is aerated and loosened by the building actions of the ants, and thus enough nutrient material and optimum conditions are available to the microorganisms.