ABSTRACT
Primer pheromones play a central proximate role in establishing and maintaining the sophisticated social structure of ant colonies. Strong evidence for the involvement of pheromones comes from showing activity with queen corpses, excluding any role for behavioral cues, together with proper controls to exclude possible tactile cues associated with a queen. In the presence of a functional queen, workers from many species representing nearly all subfamilies of ants are prevented from laying reproductive eggs. The period of greatest sexualization potential coincides with a massive reduction in queen pheromone levels leading to the short burst of annual gyne production. Effects of primer pheromones on the reproductive system of workers may be more subtle than oviposition. The pheromone appears to act indirectly by affecting the behavior of workers toward larvae in a sex-specific manner. Ant primer pheromones hold promise for development as species-specific bioregulators to control pest ant populations.
