A long-term study of a population of desert seed-eating ant colonies of the red harvester ant, Pogonomyrmex barbatus , in New Mexico, USA, shows that a colony can live for 20–30 years—the lifespan of its founding queen. A colony’s collective behaviour shifts in the course of its life history. These changes, generated by social interactions within the colony, adjust the behaviour of the colony as it grows older and larger, in response to its environment and neighbouring colonies. A worker lives only a year and performs different tasks as it ages, in response to interactions with other workers and the local surroundings. A colony’s behaviour changes—becoming more stable and consistent—as the colony grows older, with more ants to participate in social interactions. A neighbourhood of colonies, often of similar age, grows old together. Colonies differ in how they regulate foraging behaviour collectively to manage water loss. These differences influence how foragers of neighbouring colonies partition foraging area. In a harsh but stable environment, the gradual behavioural shifts over a colony’s lifespan allow it to adjust to slow changes in the composition of its neighbourhood and in environmental conditions. This article is part of the discussion meeting issue ‘Understanding age and society using natural populations’

Deborah M. Gordon

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences

该杂志发表生命科学领域的主题。只要核心学科在生物科学之内，一些问题还可能包括内容跨越到其他领域，如物理科学、社会科学、生物物理学、政策、经济学等。问题通常位于四个广泛的领域（尽管许多问题属于跨越这些领域）：有机体、环境和进化生物学神经科学和认知细胞、分子和发育生物学健康和疾病。

The journal "Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences" focuses on research in the field of biological sciences. As long as the core discipline falls within biological sciences, related issues may also span other fields such as physical sciences, social sciences, biophysics, policy, and economics. The journal typically covers four broad areas, although many issues cross these boundaries: organismal, environmental and evolutionary biology; neuroscience and cognition; cellular, molecular and developmental biology; health and disease.

《Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences》杂志专注于生命科学领域的研究。只要核心学科属于生物科学，相关问题也可能涉及其他领域，如物理科学、社会科学、生物物理学、政策和经济学等。期刊通常涵盖四个广泛的领域，尽管许多问题跨越这些领域：有机体、环境与进化生物学、神经科学与认知、细胞、分子与发育生物学、健康与疾病。

Category	Quartile
生物学	2
生物学, 生物学	2

The life history of harvester ant colonies

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