Journal of Insect Behavior 

About: Journal of Insect Behavior is an academic journal published by Springer Science+Business Media. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Animal ecology & Mating. It has an ISSN identifier of 0892-7553. Over the lifetime, 1912 publications have been published receiving 43766 citations.

The self-organizing exploratory pattern of the argentine ant

Abstract: Workers of the Argentine ant, Iridomyrmex humilis,start to explore a chemically unmarked territory randomly. As the exploratory front advances, other explorers are recruited and a trail extends from it to the nest. Whereas recruitment trails are generally constructed between two points, these exploratory trails have no fixed destination, and strongly resemble the foraging patterns of army ants. A minimal model shows how the exploratory pattern may be generated by the individual workers' simple trail-laying and -following behavior, illustrating how complex collective structures in insect colonies may be based on self-organization.

Modulation of trail laying in the ant Lasius niger (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and its role in the collective selection of a food source

Abstract: Foragers of the ant Lasius nigerexploiting a 1 Msugar source were found to lay 43 %more trail marks than those exploiting a 0.05 or a 0.1 Msource. The trail laying per forager decreased during the course of individual recruitment episodes, and the mean lifetime of the trail pheromone was estimated to be 47 min. A mathematical function describing the probability that a forager chooses one of two paths in relation to the amount of trail pheromone on them closely fitted experimental data. These results were incorporated into a model describing the recruitment dynamics of L. niger.Simulations of this model showed that the observed modulation of trail laying with respect to food source quality is sufficient in itself to account for the systematic selection of the richer source seen in the experiments.

The life and death of Hopkins' host-selection principle.

Abstract: Hopkins’ host-selection principle (HHSP) refers to the observation that many adult insects demonstrate a preference for the host species on which they themselves developed as larvae. The meaning of HHSP has changed significantly since its first proposal in 1916. This review considers how the meaning of HHSP has changed over time and considers the various mechanisms that could contribute to a behavioral bias for the developmental host. The assumption that HHSP implies that the behavior of adult insects is conditioned by larval experience has resulted in widespread condemnation of HHSP. Despite a great deal of attention, there is still very little convincing evidence for preimaginal conditioning of host choice in insects. But growing evidence indicates that genetic variation in behavior and conditioning during the life span of an adult insect can contribute to a preference for the host on which an insect developed. Insects can acquire adult oviposition or feeding preferences through exposure to chemical residues from the environment of earlier life history stages. The concepts of host races and host fidelity have become familiar and acceptable, while the association of HHSP with preimaginal conditioning has led to a general rejection of the term.

The blind leading the blind: Modeling chemically mediated army ant raid patterns

Abstract: Le modele propose et les simulations de Monte-Carlo montrent que le type caracteristique d'essaimage provient des interactions entre de nombreux individus, chacun avec un comportement de marquage de piste et de suivi de piste

A variable-response model for parasitoid foraging behavior.

Abstract: An important factor inducing variability in foraging behavior in parasitic wasps is experience gained by the insect. Together with the insect's genetic constitution and physiological state, experience ultimately defines the behavioral repertoire under specified environmental circumstances. We present a conceptual variable-response model based on several major observations of a foraging parasitoid's responses to stimuli involved in the hostfinding process. These major observations are that (1) different stimuli evoke different responses or levels of response, (2) strong responses are less variable than weak ones, (3) learning can change response levels, (4) learning increases originally low responses more than originally high responses, and (5) hostderived stimuli serve as rewards in associative learning of other stimuli. The model specifies how the intrinsic variability of a response will depend on the magnitude of the response and predicts when and how learning will modify the insect's behavior. Additional hypotheses related to the model concern how experience with a stimulus modifies behavioral responses to other stimuli, how animals respond in multistimulus situations, which stimuli act to reinforce behavioral responses to other stimuli in the learning process, and finally, how generalist and specialist species differ in their behavioral plasticity. We postulate that insight into behavioral variability in the foraging behavior of natural enemies may be a help, if not a prerequisite, for the efficient application of parasitoids in pest management.