2001). Therefore, changes in nestmate recognition are therefore conceivable within 12
days, and the protein sources used in the diets, though from different orders of insects,
may not have had distinct enough chemical profiles to affect nestmate recognition.
Alternatively, crazy ant nestmate recognition may be based primarily on genetic cues
which may not be significantly affected by environmental factors like diet, as is the case
with Argentine ants (Suarez et al. 2008 and references therein). Ultimately, further study
using longer periods of diet maintenance and different protein types, such as cockroaches,
may affect nestmate recognition in Rasberry crazy ants, though this study did not reveal
any evidence of inducible intraspecific aggression. As the density of colonies increases,
this lack of intraspecific aggression may allow continued population growth.
In keeping with the results of the intraspecific aggression assays, diet had only a
limited effect on interactions between crazy ants and fire ants. Crazy ants receiving a low
sugar diet engaged in higher scoring aggressive interactions with fire ants than crazy ants
on a high sugar diet (Figure 2.4). Yet sugar level did not affect the number of ants
fighting or mortality for either species. Protein type had no effect on antagonistic
interactions, which is consistent with the findings of Alloway et al. (1991), who found no
difference in the number of fighting ants of two species OfLeptothoracine ants that were
fed diets that differed in protein type and vitamin and mineral source but not sugar
source. Overall, the two species did not differ significantly in the average number of
workers fighting or in mortality after one hour, and there was no effect of diet on the
difference between the two species.
Carbohydrates play an important role in ant activity levels (Grover et al. 2007).
Therefore, it is expected that sugar level would affect interspecific antagonistic
24
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