The Evolutionary Ecology of Ant-Plant Mutualisms (Cambridge Studies in Ecology)

Book Description

Mutualistic interactions between ants and plants involve rewards offered by plants and services performed by ants in a mutually advantageous relationship. The rewards are principally food and/or nest sites, and ants in turn perform a number of services for plants: They disperse and plant seeds; they protect foliage, buds, and reproductive structures from enemies such as herbivores and seed predators; they fertilize plants with essential nutrients; and they may sometimes function as pollinators. In this book Professor Beattie reviews the fascinating natural history of ant-plant interactions, discusses the scientific evidence for the mutualistic nature of these relationships, and reaches some conclusions about the ecological and evolutionary processes that mold them. Mutualisms involving single pairs of species are the exception rather than the rule; usually arrays of ant species interact with arrays of plant species. Variation generated by this complexity results in variation in the function and the effectiveness of the mutualism. The result is that at any given time and place some or all of the interacting species may experience full, intermediate, or episodic benefits, or no benefits at all. This highly dynamic picture is unlikely to be confined to ant-plant mutualisms, but rather may be representative of a host of other kinds of species interactions. This important work is the first broad and thorough treatment of the subject of ant-plant mutualisms. Its natural history, experimental approach, and integration with contemporary evolutionary and ecological literature will appeal to a wide variety of biologists.

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Decent book, but not all it's hyped to be
Astonishing
Much more than I expected
What else can on say
Evolution has an inordinate fondness for insects

Evolution of the Insects
David Grimaldi , and Michael S. Engel
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0521821495

Book Description

This book chronicles the complete evolutionary history of insects--their living diversity and relationships as well as 400 million years of fossils. Introductory sections cover the living species diversity of insects, methods of reconstructing evolutionary relationships, basic insect structure, and the diverse modes of insect fossilization and major fossil deposits. Major sections then explore the relationships and evolution of each order of hexapods. The volume also chronicles major episodes in the evolutionary history of insects from their modest beginnings in the Devonian and the origin of wings hundreds of millions of years before pterosaurs and birds to the impact of mass extinctions and the explosive radiation of angiosperms on insects, and how they evolved into the most complex societies in nature. Whereas other volumes focus on either living species or fossils, this is the first comprehensive synthesis of all aspects of insect evolution. Illustrated with 955 photo- and electron- micrographs, drawings, diagrams, and field photos, many in full color and virtually all of them original, this reference will appeal to anyone engaged with insect diversity--professional entomologists and students, insect and fossil collectors, and naturalists. David Grimaldi and Michael S. Engel have collectively published over 200 scientific articles and monographs on the relationships and fossil record of insects, including 10 articles in the journals Science, Nature, and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. David Grimaldi is curator in the Division of Invertebrate Zoology, American Museum of Natural History and adjunct professor at Cornell University, Columbia University, and the City University of New York. David Grimaldi has traveled in 40 countries on 6 continents, collecting and studying recent species of insects and conducting fossil excavations. He is the author of Amber: Window to the Past (Abrams, 2003). Michael S. Engel is an assistant professor in the Division of Entomology at the University of Kansas; assistant curator at the Natural History Museum, University of Kansas; research associate of the American Museum of Natural History; and fellow of the Linnean Society of London. Engel has visited numerous countries for entomological and paleontological studies, doing most of his fieldwork in Central Asia, Asia Minor, and the Western Hemisphere.

Customer Reviews:

Decent book, but not all it's hyped to be.......2007-07-25

This book was a textbook for a course on insect fossils I took a few years ago and we read it cover to cover. My fellow classmates and I (all professional entomologists) had mixed reviews of this book. While it undoutedly provides a lot of good information and is a tremendous contribution to the field of insect fossils, it also contains several mistakes and leaves out a lot of important information. For example, the professor for my fossil insect course is one of the world's experts on giant water bug fossils and was appalled to see what was clearly a giant water bug fossil, from a formation in Germany he has studied himself, labeled as a naucorid, a completely different insect. A description of a dryopid beetle fossil on another page said that all stages of dryopids are aquatic when the larvae are terrestrial. My classmates and I found several such errata throughout the book and felt they seriously undermined the reliability of the information it contains. We were also all annoyed by the lack of molecular support for the arguments presented by the authors. While morphological data is certainly important to consider in systematic studies, it is blatently obvious that the authors don't think much of molecular phylogenetic data. This is unfortunate because in several cases, molecular data has cleared up long standing controversies over taxnomic deliniations where morphological data alone could not. It is clear from the text that the authors are more comfortable with the morphological data than molecular (as expected - they're experts on insect fossils), which would be fine if the book was called Insect Paleontology. However, this book is called Evolution of the Insects. Molecular data is a huge part of modern insect systematics and phylogenetics and any book purporting to canvas the subject of insect evolution should take advantage of the entire wealth of knowledge available and report on it all. That said, this book does what few other books does: it contains information on both extant and extinct linages and it covers the groups we know only through fossils as thoroughly as it does the living taxa. For me, that information alone makes this book worth reading, and is the reason I give it 3 stars insted of 2.

Astonishing.......2007-07-17

It is difficult to understand how such an extraordinary book can be published for such a good price. The production values for this volume put to shame nearly every other book on evolutionary history I own. It is hard to imagine how the authors secured this level of support for publishing a relatively narrow-interest book. I assume significant grants must have been involved.

I can only hope that future books by different authors on the evolutionary history of different organisms (chordates, molluscs, etc.) will be afforded this level of support.

Much more than I expected.......2007-01-23

Evolution of the Insects is not a light read. It could be the textbook for a graduate course in Entomology, but if you are fascinated by insects and you want to use some of your gray cells, this book is for you! The authors present the latest views on insect evolution based on fossil evidence, anatomical studies of modern insects and molecular evidence as well. The images of fossil insects and phylogenetic trees are remarkable. I am enjoying and learning something new on every page.

What else can on say.......2006-08-30

Magnificent piece of work by the authors (scholars)! Incredible! It is about time such a compilation was put together. The significance of insects, and natural selection cannot be understated! To bad we will not be around in the near future but insects will. Enough said a must have in one's library.

Evolution has an inordinate fondness for insects.......2006-08-13

What organism has a loss of musculature in the antenna beyond the scape, possesses the Johnston's Organ, and for females the presence of an ovipositor formed by gonapophyses? The answer is an organism that seems to have the favor of evolutionary pressures for over 400 million years which has produced about 5,000, 000 species of insects that are alive today. The authors of this book estimate that perhaps 100 million species have existed at various points in this evolutionary timescale. Even if you are not an entomophile, even if you were never tempted to create a butterfly collection, and even if bee and ant stings, pesky cockroaches, and devastating grasshoppers cause you to believe that humans are better off without insects, this literary and scientific masterpiece will give you a deep appreciation for how the most successful life forms on the planet have evolved over the past 400 million years. Written for the professional entomologist and serious students of entomology, with some perseverance and discipline, along with a sizeable block in time, any reader who is interested in the subject matter can gain immensely from a reading of this book. Everything about insects is fascinating, and one could spend a lifetime for example just studying the evolution of one particular order of insects. For readers (such as this reviewer) who are not experts in entomology it is helpful to photocopy the glossary while reading the book, in order to have the important terminology readily available without having to constantly flip to the back of the book. There are hundreds of facts in the book that are fascinating and surprising. A small sampling of these include:
- The sociality of certain species of insects, such as bees, termites, and ants, does not by itself explain ecological dominance. The exact species and the size of the colonies must be taken into consideration also.
- Since the book addresses is about evolution, the authors address the theory of evolution in general and the biological mechanisms used in adaptation and change. The authors speak of insects as being the most diverse group of organisms in history. But how does one actually measure diversity and "evolutionary success" of a group of organisms? The authors list a few criteria for doing so: the longevity of lineage; the degree of diversity in adaptations; the biomass; the ecological impact. One can measure diversity by counting the number of species, and by observing the variety of structures and behaviors that allows insects to adapt to the environment.
- The high oxygen content of the atmosphere during the Permian period allowed the flight of gigantic insects, the griffenflies, which represent the largest insects that have ever lived. The Meganluropsis permiana had an amazing wingspan of almost 28 inches.
- Even though insects do not leave behind skeletons of bone when they perish, they have left behind an impressive fossil record in amber and other media such as carbon, silica, and tar.
- Insects are also masters of mimicry and camouflage. There are ample photos in the book that illustrate this.
- The insects are masters at being crop pests and spreading disease, and the authors point out that every plant species has at least one insect species that feeds on it. However, in spite of the major annoyance of insects to humans sometimes, to take away ants, bees, and termites the authors say would result in the possible extinction of all terrestrial life.
- Two species of insects, namely Apis mellifera (honey bee) and Drosophila melanogaster (fruitfly) have been the most intensely investigated life forms on Earth.
- For readers with a background in bioinformatics/molecular biology, the author discuss various methodologies for phylogeny reconstruction, such as likelihood models and Bayesian belief networks.
- "Popular culture" and Hollywood have played up the possibility of DNA preservation in amber. The authors give an explicit example where this has accomplished, namely a fragment of a chloroplast gene of 770 base pairs long from an extinct tree Magnolia latahensis.
- The `cryptobiotic' state that some organisms, the tarigrades, can be in, allowing survival through extreme conditions such as temperatures above the boiling point of water or high intensity X-rays.
- The origin of insect flight and geometry and anatomy of the insect wing, which contain flexion lines that allow the generation of vortices. Insects were the first organisms to fly, and with flight came sophisticated nervous systems. Insects could then learn, and as the case of the honeybee shows, impressively so.
- Mammalian evolution was coupled with that of insects as expected, with a good example being the evolution of the phthirapterons (lice).
- The coleopterans, the beetles, and given wide discussion in the book. The tiger beetle is the fast running insect and some beetles can spray an adversary with a hot mixture of water, oxygen, and quinones. The catharoid beetles and their bioluminescent ability is given detailed discussion. The genes utilized in bioluminescence have been inserted as transgenes in some organisms to study their metabolic activity. The authors discuss in some depth the evolutionary advantages of bioluminescence.

The list goes on, and the authors encourage the reader at the end of the book to further their studies of entomology and give warning to the importance of the preservation of insects, even though their resilience through time is unequaled. The extinction of insects by human destruction of habitat is a reality that must be dealt with, and the elimination of certain species of insects would be catastrophic for most of the lifeforms on the planet (the termites being the best example). Insects have thus been friend and foe to humankind, but through the techniques of genetic engineering the impact to humans of the foes can be diminished (such as malaria in mosquitoes). It is quite possible that the evolution of insects can be accelerated using these techniques, but if not one can still be confident that evolution will, to paraphrase the biologist G.E. Hutchinson, continue to have an inordinate fondness for insects.

Insect-Fungal Associations: Ecology and Evolution

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Scintillating Symbiosis

Insect-Fungal Associations: Ecology and Evolution

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Borror and DeLong's Introduction to the Study of Insects

ASIN: 0195166523

Book Description

Insects and fungi have a shared history of association in common habitats where together they endure similar environmental conditions, but only recently have mycologists and entomologists recognized and had the techniques to study the intricacies of some of the associations. This new volume covers "seven wonders of the insect-fungus world" for which exciting new results have become available, often due to the use of new methods that include phylogenetic analysis and development of molecular markers. Eleven chapters of the volume are presented in two sections, "Fungi that act against insects" and "Fungi mutualistic with insects" that cover a number of major themes. Examples of necrotrophic parasites of insects are discussed, not only for biological control potential, but also as organisms with population structure and complex multipartite interactions; a beneficial role for symptomless endophytes in broad-leafed plants is proposed; biotrophic fungal parasites with reduced morphologies are placed among relatives using phylogenetic methods; complex methods of fungal spore dispersal include interactions with one or more arthropods; the farming behavior of New World attine ants is compared with that of humans and the Old World fungus-growing termites; certain mycophagous insects use fungi as a sole nutritional resource; and other insects obtain nutritional supplements from yeasts. Insects involved in fungal associations include--but are not limited to--members of the Coleoptera, Diptera, Homoptera, Hymenoptera, and Isoptera. The fungi involved in interactions with insects may be clustered taxonomically, as is the case for Ascomycetes in the Hypocreales (e.g., Beauveria, Metarhizium, Fusarium), ambrosia fungi in the genera ophiostoma and ceratocystis and their asexual relatives, Laboulbeniomycetes, Saccharomycetes, and the more basal Microsporidia. Other groups, however, have only occasional members (e.g., mushrooms cultivated by attine ants and termites) in such associations. The chapters included in this volume constitute a modern crash course in the study of insect-fungus associations.

Customer Reviews:

Scintillating Symbiosis.......2005-06-03

Biology often reveals worlds within worlds, and this book does an excellent job of describing the extraordinarily complex relationships between insects and fungi. Yeast-eating beetles! Fungi hiding in the leaves of plants! Ants that tend fungus gardens - like tiny mushroom farmers! This scholarly volume will open your eyes to some of the more subtle wonders of nature.

The Biomechanics of Insect Flight: Form, Function, Evolution

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Great coverage, but written for specialists

The Biomechanics of Insect Flight: Form, Function, Evolution
Robert Dudley
Manufacturer: Princeton University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0691094918

Book Description

From the rain forests of Borneo to the tenements of Manhattan, winged insects are a conspicuous and abundant feature of life on earth. Here, Robert Dudley presents the first comprehensive explanation of how insects fly. The author relates the biomechanics of flight to insect ecology and evolution in a major new work of synthesis.

The book begins with an overview of insect flight biomechanics. Dudley explains insect morphology, wing motions, aerodynamics, flight energetics, and flight metabolism within a modern phylogenetic setting. Drawing on biomechanical principles, he describes and evaluates flight behavior and the limits to flight performance. The author then takes the next step by developing evolutionary explanations of insect flight. He analyzes the origins of flight in insects, the roles of natural and sexual selection in determining how insects fly, and the relationship between flight and insect size, pollination, predation, dispersal, and migration. Dudley ranges widely--from basic aerodynamics to muscle physiology and swarming behavior--but his focus is the explanation of functional design from evolutionary and ecological perspectives.

The importance of flight in the lives of insects has long been recognized but never systematically evaluated. This book addresses that shortcoming. Robert Dudley provides an introduction to insect flight that will be welcomed by students and researchers in biomechanics, entomology, evolution, ecology, and behavior.

Customer Reviews:

Great coverage, but written for specialists.......2004-02-28

This book has something of a Jekyll-and-Hyde personality. A reader who is comfortable reading research literature on insects will find an organized, thoroughly documented and well-balanced summary of current knowledge of insect flight. Unfortunately, Dudley is one of those scholars whose writing is saturated with technical jargon and complex sentences, even when simpler English could make the same point. So while the content is great, reading this work is the mental equivalent of hiking through knee-deep snow. Enthusiastic entomologists will find it worth reading: everyone else will find it hard to follow.

Macroevolutionary Theory on Macroecological Patterns

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Macroevolutionary Theory on Macroecological Patterns
Peter W. Price
Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0521520371

Book Description

This study of distribution, abundance and population size variation in animals (formerly regarded as pure ecological subjects) is presented in an evolutionary framework. Arguing that evolved characters of organisms such as morphology, behavior and life history influence their ecological relationships, this new conceptual framework is broadly relevant to ecologists, evolutionary biologists, behavioral scientists and entomologists.

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In Macroevolutionary Theory on Macroecological Patterns, Peter Price establishes a completely new vision of the central themes in ecology. For the first time in book form, the study of distribution, abundance, and population size variation in animals is cast in an evolutionary framework. The book argues that evolved characters of organisms such as morphology, behavior, and life history influence strongly their ecological relationships, including the way that populations fluctuate through time and space. The central ideas in the book are supported by data gathered from over 20 years of research, primarily into plant and herbivore interactions, concentrating on insects. The huge diversity of insect herbivores provides the immense comparative power necessary for a strong evolutionary study of ecological principles. The book is intended as essential reading for all researchers and students of ecology, evolutionary biology, and behavior, and for entomologists working in agriculture, horticulture, and forestry.

Drosophila: A Practical Approach (Practical Approach Series)

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Good book, but biased in favour of genetics:

Drosophila: A Practical Approach (Practical Approach Series)

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0199636605

Book Description

Drosophila--the scientist's favorite laboratory organism--is a key subject for studying genetics, development, and behavior. The second edition of this popular hands-on guide brings the methodology up-to-date, with contributions from the leading researchers in the field. Chapters include the
elements of Drosophila biology and genetics; mutagenesis; transposons--gene tagging and mutagenesis; chromosome mechanics: the genetic manipulation of aneuploid stocks; enhancer traps; looking at embryos; immunolabelling of Drosophila; population and ecological genetics; behavior, learning, and
memory; cell culture; and preparation of nucleic acids.

Customer Reviews:

Good book, but biased in favour of genetics:.......2000-01-18

This is a very good book, and contains useful protocols. For those of us who remember the first edition, it was heavily biased in favour of genetics. So is the second edition, in spite of the fact that Drosophila is being used more and more for studies in cytology, physiology and biochemistry. Nevertheless, this book is indispensible for those interested in doing classical genetics with Drosophila. It explains how to maintain flies, how to do basic crosses and ballance chromosomes, and how to do P-element induced mutations. There is also a section of how to extract and manipulate nucleic acids from flies, and a very brief (but interesting section) on fly BEHAVIOR and genetic studies of fly behavior. I found this interesting since many researchers have been turning to Drosophila as a model organism in learning and behavior (including addiction and substance abuse) studies in recent years. Several things are noticably lacking from this book however. A section on polytene chromosomes is conspicuously absent, in spite of the fact that this is one of the main tools of Drosophilists. The inclusion of several sections on fly cytology would definitely have been useful, such as PISH (polytene in situ hybridization), and other methods for locating gene products in fly cells. A section on microinjection and transformation of fly embryos would have been useful too. The basic theoretical information is there, but the technique is not dealt with specifically, and no protocols are given. The P-element enhancer trap system is dealt with briefly, but could have been expanded more. For those interested in the fruitfly as a model organism in cytology and molecular biology I would recommend 'Drosophila melanogaster: Practical Uses in Cell and Molecular Biology,' from the 'Methods in Cell Biology' series (Volume 44). This is a good book although it too could use more detailed protocols. Unfortunately this book is out of print, so it is hard to comeby! Alternatively, the 'Cold Spring Harbour Press' is due to come out with 'Drosophila Protocols' in the Spring of 2000. I have seen the putative table of contents, and it looks like this may be a very comprehensive book, and I'll make sure to have a look at it as soon as it is published. Greg Doheny (Vancouver B.C.)

The Evolution of Social Behaviour in Insects and Arachnids

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The Evolution of Social Behaviour in Insects and Arachnids

Manufacturer: Cambridge University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0521589770

Book Description

Social insects and arachnids exhibit forms of complex behavior that involve cooperation in building a nest, defending against attackers or rearing offspring. This book is a comprehensive, up-to-date guide to sociality and its evolution in a wide range of taxa. In it, leading researchers review the extent of sociality in different insect and arachnid groups, analyze the genetic, ecological and demographic causes of sociality from a comparative perspective, and suggest ways in which the field can be better understood. The book contains fascinating accounts of the social lives of many different insects and arachnids, as well as tests of current theories of the evolution of social behavior. The Evolution of Social Behaviour in Insects and Arachnids provides essential reading and insight for students and researchers interested in social behavior, behavioral ecology, entomology, and arachnology.

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Social Evolution in Ants
Andrew F.G. Bourke , and Nigel R. Franks
Manufacturer: Princeton University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0691044260
Release Date: 2007-02-05

Book Description

Biologists since Darwin have been intrigued and confounded by the complex issues involved in the evolution and ecology of the social behavior of insects. The self-sacrifice of sterile workers in ant colonies has been particularly difficult for evolutionary biologists to explain. In this important new book, Andrew Bourke and Nigel Franks not only present a detailed overview of the current state of scientific knowledge about social evolution in ants, but also show how studies on ants have contributed to an understanding of many fundamental topics in behavioral ecology and evolutionary biology.

One of the substantial contributions of Social Evolution in Ants is its clear explanation of kin selection theory and sex ratio theory and their applications to social evolution in insects. Working to dispel lingering skepticism about the validity of kin selection and, more broadly, of "selfish gene" theory, Bourke and Franks show how these ideas underpin the evolution of both cooperation and conflict within ant societies. In addition, using simple algebra, they provide detailed explanations of key mathematical models. Finally, the authors discuss two relatively little-known topics in ant social biology: life history strategy and mating systems.

This comprehensive, up-to-date, and well-referenced work will appeal to all researchers in social insect biology and to scholars and students in the fields of entomology, behavioral ecology, and evolution.

Butterflies: Ecology and Evolution Taking Flight

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Butterflies: Ecology and Evolution Taking Flight

Manufacturer: University Of Chicago Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0226063186

Book Description

In Butterflies: Ecology and Evolution Taking Flight, the world's leading experts synthesize current knowledge of butterflies to show how the study of these fascinating creatures as model systems can lead to deeper understanding of ecological and evolutionary patterns and processes in general. The twenty-six chapters are organized into broad functional areas, covering the uses of butterflies in the study of behavior, ecology, genetics and evolution, systematics, and conservation biology. Especially in the context of the current biodiversity crisis, this book shows how results found with butterflies can help us understand large, rapid changes in the world we share with them—for example, geographic distributions of some butterflies have begun to shift in response to global warming, giving early evidence of climate change that scientists, politicians, and citizens alike should heed.

The first international synthesis of butterfly biology in two decades, Butterflies: Ecology and Evolution Taking Flight offers students, scientists, and amateur naturalists a concise overview of the latest developments in the field. Furthermore, it articulates an exciting new perspective of the whole group of approximately 15,000 species of butterflies as a comprehensive model system for all the sciences concerned with biodiversity and its preservation.

Contributors:
Carol L. Boggs, Paul M. Brakefield, Adriana D. Briscoe, Dana L. Campbell, Elizabeth E. Crone, Mark Deering, Henri Descimon, Erika I. Deinert, Paul R. Ehrlich, John P. Fay, Richard ffrench-Constant, Sherri Fownes, Lawrence E. Gilbert, André Gilles, Ilkka Hanski, Jane K. Hill, Brian Huntley, Niklas Janz, Greg Kareofelas, Nusha Keyghobadi, P. Bernhard Koch, Claire Kremen, David C. Lees, Jean-François Martin, Antónia Monteiro, Paulo César Motta, Camille Parmesan, William D. Patterson, Naomi E. Pierce, Robert A. Raguso, Charles Lee Remington, Jens Roland, Ronald L. Rutowski, Cheryl B. Schultz, J. Mark Scriber, Arthur M. Shapiro, Michael C. Singer, Felix Sperling, Curtis Strobeck, Aram Stump, Chris D. Thomas, Richard VanBuskirk, Hans Van Dyck, Richard I. Vane-Wright, Ward B. Watt, Christer Wiklund, and Mark A. Willis

Ants at Work: How an Insect Society is Organized

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Learned More About People
Ants Procrastinate??
You should read this book if...
A whole world opens before your eyes
All Work and No Play....

Ants at Work: How an Insect Society is Organized
Deborah M. Gordon
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0393321320

Amazon.com

For as long as humans have been telling stories about animals, ants have played the role of hard-working, slavish, mindless drudge, the kind of creature that busily prepares for the future without resting or reflecting. But at least one species, writes Stanford University professor Deborah Gordon in this engaging study, slips free of our stereotypes. The harvester ant, an abundant denizen of the Southwestern deserts, seems to live in a society that is based on something like mutual aid, far from the six-legged dictatorships of fable--and, indeed, far from the human models that storytellers and ethologists alike have imposed on ant congregations. Gordon wonders, "If the ants don't work like a miniature human society, how does a group of rather inept little creatures create a colony that gets things done?" She proposes a number of answers in her wide-ranging book, one of which is this: ants get things done by accident, by experimenting with and constantly testing their surroundings to see what there is to eat, and who else is trying to get at it. Gordon writes with good humor about the daily work of studying insects in the intense heat of the desert, noting, "Over the years I have evolved a costume that includes a long-sleeved shirt, a cap with a kind of curtain around its lower edge, and the largest sunglasses I can find. I look rather like an insect myself." Readers approaching her book will find that they learn a lot about ants in the process--and also a lot about how field scientists get things done themselves. --Gregory McNamee

Book Description

Individual ants manage their incredibly complex colonies with no one in charge--how do they do it? Ants have long been regarded as the most interesting of the social insects. With their queens and celibate workers, these intriguing creatures have captured the imaginations of scientists and children alike for generations. Yet until now, no one had studied intensely the life cycle of the ant colony as a whole. An ant colony has a life cycle of about fifteen years--it is born, matures, and dies. But the individual ants that inhabit the colony live only one year. So how does this system of tunnels and caves in the dirt become so much more than the sum of its parts? Leading ant researcher Deborah Gordon takes the reader to the Arizona desert to explore this question. The answer involves the emerging insights of the new science of complexity, and contributes to understanding the evolution of life itself.

Customer Reviews:

Learned More About People.......2007-05-29

This book I found in a used book store, under a table, in San Luis Obispo, CA. Somehow, it jumped out at me (like all good books do -- they seem to choose their own readers).

I found this to be fascinating! Ms. Gordon and her colleagues went to an enormous amount of work to gather the data, and she compliled it in a most interesting way. It was intriguing to me how ants mange their colony lives, with foraging and hunting, etc. Also how ants cooperate primarily by some sort of chemical process, one that can change as conditions vary.

The graph of colony population vs. age was especially interesting. It shows a real-life application of the Logistics Function. Who would ever have thought such a thing would apply to an Ant Colony, of all things???? But it does. Remarkable.

Mostly, though, the analysis of ant colonies seems to have many parallels to human organizations. Like, at a theme park, why do people go stand in long lines at McD's, when an equal-caliber establishment -- right next door -- has very few customers? Or how is it that organizations such as factories really work? And on and on.

I'm really glad I found this book. It will be in my collection permanently, and I will read it again in the future.

Ants Procrastinate??.......2005-06-30

Yes, sometimes ants work hard. They ALWAYS look like they work hard - until you look real closely - and maybe put up a few roadblocks.

Deborah Gordon spent 17 summers virtually memorizing the same 25 acres in Arizona with her students, fooling around with about 300 colonies of harvester ants. She chose them for the scientific reason that they were big enough to see without glasses.

They are efficient? On page 105, Gordon includes a delightful excerpt from Mark Twain about ants. "They pick up something too large, go over obstructions instead of around, when and if they finally drag the prize into the nest, half the time it's worthless and has to be dragged off by midden workers," - the garbage collectors of antdom.

They are subservient to the queen? "Look to the ant, thou sluggard; Consider her ways and be wise: Which having no chief, overseer, or ruler, Provides her meat in the summer, And gathers her food in the harvest." Proverbs 6:6. Gordon agrees with the good book...there is no guiding force. They just seem to know what to do and frequently change jobs as needed.

They have an elaborate means of communication? Not that we can see. Their eyesight is poor and they communicate by touching antennaes, and by sensing perhaps 12 different chemicals on each other.

At 4:30 AM Gordon et al get up, eat breakfast, and take a 20 minute trip out of the mountains to the site, where they set up the experiment they have agonized over, or analyze the one in progress. Before noon, as the heat sets in, they go back up the mountain and the ants go back into their mound - their foraging done, and the ant watchers' practical jokes accomplished and recorded. The rest of the day is spent tabulating and analyzing data and dreaming up new tricks in order to tease out more secrets of anthood.

Gordon's process is a good example of the tedious, meticulous work of science. As she developed her data of the mindless pseudo-efficiency of an ant colony, a correllation occured to me about the self organization of stem cells as they differentiate, specialize, and mindlessly create a living entity, guided by only partially known processes (admittedly not a perfect analogy).

This is a good read, an easy read and refreshingly out of the ordinary.

You should read this book if..........2002-07-13

I'm a bit surprised by some of the negative comments about this book, because they seem to have missed its point. This isn't a formal presentation of the author's research. It therefore lacks many details, does not review the full range of other relevant literature, and it has not been honed by a committee of reviewers. What it DOES do is to give the reader who doesn't know anything about ants a very readable narrative account of how one might go about finding out something about them. This book is as much about how to apply the scientific method to the messy world of animal behavior as it is about ants in particular. Gordon's account of how to do that seems to have been mistaken by some as self indulgence. If you're looking for a detailed account of ants, you should see Holldobler and Wilson's 700+ page "The Ants." If you want an introduction to what's interesting about ants and how people go about studying them, Gordon's book is a great read.

A whole world opens before your eyes.......2002-05-25

I LOVE this book. What a rare peek over the shoulder of a true scientist with an inquisitive mind and appreciation for the art and beauty of science, applied to these tiny but incredibly interesting creatures. Within the same nest reside 5 or more ant types based on function. In that nest, some live up to 20 years while others "don't live long enough to EVER eat." I will never look at ants the same. Thank you for an insightful and wonderful story that makes life worth living.

All Work and No Play...........2001-04-01

A book that reads like a thesis is never any fun. Ants at Work takes an interesting premise(Ant colonies are not run with any central organization but on a series of interactions within the society) and then proceeds to suck all the life out of it! Filled with graphs and the mind-numbing detail about how the experiments were laid out, Gordon describes a process that was as painful to read as it was to perform. The science seems valid and for that I commend the author, but where's the wit to lighten the burden of all this research. With few illustrations to break up the monotony, this book will be a bore for all but the most studious of entomologists.

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