title: When social behaviour is moulded in clay: on growth and form of social insect nests.
abstract: The nests built by social insects are among the most complex structures produced by animal groups. They reveal the social behaviour of a colony and as such they potentially allow comparative studies. However, for a long time, research on nest architecture was hindered by the lack of technical tools allowing the visualisation of their complex 3D structures and the quantification of their properties. Several techniques, developed over the years, now make it possible to study the organisation of these nests and how they are built. Here, we review present knowledge of the mechanisms of nest construction, and how nest structure affects the behaviour of individual insects and the organisation of activities within a colony.
authors.affiliation: Unité d'Ecologie Sociale, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Campus de la Plaine, 1050 Bruxelles, Belgium.|Department of Life Sciences, University of Roehampton, Holybourne Avenue, London SW15 4JD, UK.
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 guy.theraulaz@univ-tlse3.fr.
authors.forename: Guy
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-3062-4215
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Theraulaz
mesh_terms: D000538:Aluminum Silicates / Q000737:chemistry; D000819:Animal Communication; D000818:Animals; D001000:Ants / Q000502:physiology*; D000077215:Clay; D020049:Isoptera / Q000502:physiology*; D009425:Nesting Behavior; D010675:Pheromones / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D012919:Social Behavior
chemical_list: D000538:Aluminum Silicates; D010675:Pheromones; D000077215:Clay
keywords: Ants, Termites; Collective animal behaviour; Nest architecture; Nest building; Self-organisation; Stigmergy