ABSTRACT
This chapter examines some of the consequences of the tradeoff between reproductive success acquired through personal reproduction and through helping a close relative to reproduce. It discusses the use of space and the movement patterns of workers within colonies of this species. The chapter argues that the workers are behaving in such a way as to maximize their own personal reproductive success even to the extent of reducing the reproductive success of other members of the colony. The movements of an ant were continuously recorded together with any activity of the ant and the identity of any ants with which an interaction took place. In order to understand the patterns of movement and space use one needs to take into account the aggressive interactions between individuals and where these interactions occur. The chapter addresses two major topics in this discussion: the organization of colony activity and the dependence of worker behavior on hierarchy rank.
