The effect of trail length on task partitioning in three Acromyrmex species (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Abstract

By comparing the behavior of three Acromyrmex (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) species during foraging on artificial trails of different lengths, we observed the occurrence of task partitioning and its relation to the food distance from the nest. Task partitioning was verified by leaf cache formation along the trail and leaf direct transferring among workers. There was significant difference between the number of leaf fragments carried directly to the fungus chamber and those transferred direct or indirectly, via cache, depending upon the trail length. Task partitioning could be a strategy used by leaf-cutting ants that allows the workers to use food sources far from their nests.