Ant Wars: Can Native and Invasive Ants Coexist?
Are you interested in the project below? Awesome! PLEASE DO NOT APPLY THROUGH THE URO SITE. Instead, follow this link [https://forms.gle/3T3jQSvgUz5D7gpG8] to send in your application by Feb. 22nd, 11:59pm.
Ants are among the most abundant organisms on earth, with a recent estimate placing their number around 20 quadrillion individuals and their biomass around 20% of human biomass. They play key roles in ecosystems around the world, contributing to seed dispersal, soil aeration and nutrient cycling. However, invasive ants such as the Argentine Ant are giving a bad rap to ants in general by invading people's homes and also causing major crop damage. Worse, such invasive ants often create cooperative super-colonies that spread over hundreds of miles, driving out native ant species within their range. Despite well-established evidence that Argentine ants drive out native harvester ants across California, here at our Bernard Field Station Argentine ants and native harvester ants seem to be coexisting, even though frequent interactions have been observed. What allows this population of harvester ants to resist Argentine ant invasion?
To explore this question, we aim to document the daily rhythm of harvester ant activity around the nest using field cameras programmed to take short videos throughout the day. Do they show defensive or evasive behaviors such as plugging their nest entrances at night, foraging at times when Argentine ants aren't active, or in specific directions away from Argentine ant activity? How are these behaviors impacted by local climate conditions and cues indicating the presence of Argentine ants? Such behavioral defenses could explain how our local population of harvester ants has managed to persist despite Argentine ant invasion. This summer project will set the stage for a larger collaborative study aimed at predicting how the triple threat of species invasion, climate change, and increasing urbanization will shape the community of native harvester ants and the plants that depend on them across Southern California.
Students working on this project will (1) find and document native harvester ant colonies at the Bernard Field Station, (2) build and deploy a set of field cameras and environmental sensors, (3) plan and perform experiments testing behavioral responses to cues of Argentine ant presence in the field, (4) assess, implement and/or fine-tune various automated methods for tracking ants from video, (5) analyze data and videos from the field cameras using a combination of manual and automated methods, and/or (6) statistically analyze and present the results in visual and written form.
You will be part of a team of students working on an interdisciplinary project, using biology, chemistry, computation and engineering to solve problems of biological and applied conservation interest. You'll also have the opportunity to spend some time outdoors, observing nature. The variety of techniques and approaches will give you an opportunity to explore your interests and develop new skills. This is a collaborative project with researchers at UC San Diego and UC Riverside, which could expand your professional network. There may be opportunities to continue the work in a senior thesis, present at a regional or national conference, and/or co-author future publications stemming from ongoing work.