title: Stigmergic construction and topochemical information shape ant nest architecture.
abstract: The nests of social insects are not only impressive because of their sheer complexity but also because they are built from individuals whose work is not centrally coordinated. A key question is how groups of insects coordinate their building actions. Here, we use a combination of experimental and modeling approaches to investigate nest construction in the ant Lasius niger. We quantify the construction dynamics and the 3D structures built by ants. Then, we characterize individual behaviors and the interactions of ants with the structures they build. We show that two main interactions are involved in the coordination of building actions: (i) a stigmergic-based interaction that controls the amplification of depositions at some locations and is attributable to a pheromone added by ants to the building material; and (ii) a template-based interaction in which ants use their body size as a cue to control the height at which they start to build a roof from existing pillars. We then develop a 3D stochastic model based on these individual behaviors to analyze the effect of pheromone presence and strength on construction dynamics. We show that the model can quantitatively reproduce key features of construction dynamics, including a large-scale pattern of regularly spaced pillars, the formation and merging of caps over the pillars, and the remodeling of built structures. Finally, our model suggests that the lifetime of the pheromone is a highly influential parameter that controls the growth and form of nest architecture.
authors.affiliation: Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul Sabatier (UPS), F-31062 Toulouse Cedex 9, France; CNRS, Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, F-31062 Toulouse, France;
authors.forename: Anaïs
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Khuong
authors.affiliation: Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul Sabatier (UPS), F-31062 Toulouse Cedex 9, France; CNRS, Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, F-31062 Toulouse, France;
authors.forename: Jacques
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gautrais
authors.affiliation: Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul Sabatier (UPS), F-31062 Toulouse Cedex 9, France; CNRS, Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, F-31062 Toulouse, France;
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Perna
authors.affiliation: Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul Sabatier (UPS), F-31062 Toulouse Cedex 9, France; CNRS, Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, F-31062 Toulouse, France; Institut de Mathématiques de Toulouse, Université Paul Sabatier, Institut National des Sciences Appliquées, Université Toulouse 1 Capitole, Université Toulouse II Le Mirail, F-31062 Toulouse, France; Institut de Mathématiques de Toulouse, UMR 5219, CNRS, F-31062 Toulouse, France;
authors.forename: Chaker
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sbaï
authors.affiliation: Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul Sabatier (UPS), F-31062 Toulouse Cedex 9, France; CNRS, Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, F-31062 Toulouse, France;
authors.forename: Maud
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Combe
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'Informatique de Nantes Atlantique, Polytech'Nantes, 44300 Nantes, France.
authors.forename: Pascale
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kuntz
authors.affiliation: Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul Sabatier (UPS), F-31062 Toulouse Cedex 9, France; CNRS, Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, F-31062 Toulouse, France;
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jost
authors.affiliation: Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, Centre de Biologie Intégrative (CBI), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul Sabatier (UPS), F-31062 Toulouse Cedex 9, France; CNRS, Centre de Recherches sur la Cognition Animale, F-31062 Toulouse, France; guy.theraulaz@univ-tlse3.fr.
authors.forename: Guy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Theraulaz
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001000:Ants / Q000502:physiology*; D008962:Models, Theoretical
keywords: ants; collective animal behavior; computational modeling; nest building; stigmergy