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<p>Monitoring of social insect colonies conducted over years or decades has the potential to provide insights into population dynamics and life history, and may be increasingly important in the context of climate change. Not much is known about the extent to which nest site occupancy is equivalent to colony identity, yet this knowledge is important for interpreting demographic data. We repurposed previously collected genetic data collected over time intervals ranging from three to twenty-six years in 95 colonies of the western harvester ant, <i>Pogonomyrmex occidentalis,</i> to assess the degree to which continuous occupancy predicts colony identity. Collectively, these time intervals sum to more than 1300 colony-years of observation. The eleven colonies with the longest time interval (26&#xa0;years) did not change identity during that period. We identified a single unsuspected turnover event in which one colony replaced another despite the nest site being continuously occupied. Our results support the use of nest site occupancy to track colony longevity in some species, provided that monitoring occurs at regular intervals. We also documented colony replacement in five nest sites that were continuously occupied, but which displayed abrupt size decreases and declines in external appearance. Including additional data in monitoring studies may improve the accuracy of colony lifespan estimates.</p>

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Ant queen longevity in the field

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2025年6月10日

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  • D C. Wiernasz,
  • B J. Cole

摘要

Monitoring of social insect colonies conducted over years or decades has the potential to provide insights into population dynamics and life history, and may be increasingly important in the context of climate change. Not much is known about the extent to which nest site occupancy is equivalent to colony identity, yet this knowledge is important for interpreting demographic data. We repurposed previously collected genetic data collected over time intervals ranging from three to twenty-six years in 95 colonies of the western harvester ant, Pogonomyrmex occidentalis, to assess the degree to which continuous occupancy predicts colony identity. Collectively, these time intervals sum to more than 1300 colony-years of observation. The eleven colonies with the longest time interval (26 years) did not change identity during that period. We identified a single unsuspected turnover event in which one colony replaced another despite the nest site being continuously occupied. Our results support the use of nest site occupancy to track colony longevity in some species, provided that monitoring occurs at regular intervals. We also documented colony replacement in five nest sites that were continuously occupied, but which displayed abrupt size decreases and declines in external appearance. Including additional data in monitoring studies may improve the accuracy of colony lifespan estimates.