title: Phase transition between disordered and ordered foraging in Pharaoh's ants.
abstract: The complex collective behavior seen in many insect societies strongly suggests that a minimum number of workers are required for these societies to function effectively. Here we investigated the transition between disordered and ordered foraging in the Pharaoh's ant. We show that small colonies forage in a disorganized manner, with a transition to organized pheromone-based foraging in larger colonies. We also show that when food sources are difficult to locate through independent searching, this transition is first-order and exhibits hysteresis, comparable to a first-order phase transition found in many physical systems. To our knowledge, this is the first experimental evidence of a behavioral phase transition between a maladaptive (disorganized) and an adaptive (organized) state.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Apiculture and Social Insects, Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, Sheffield University, United Kingdom. mbeekman@bio.usyd.edu.au
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Beekman
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Sumpter
authors.forename: F L
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: Ratnieks
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001000:Ants / Q000502:physiology*; D001070:Appetitive Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D008954:Models, Biological; D010675:Pheromones / Q000502:physiology; D012919:Social Behavior
chemical_list: D010675:Pheromones