Ants Research Laboratory
Our ProjectsWe use the ants to answer questions of conceptual interest.
Long distance transport of invasive species: firewood as a pathway for arthropods (Directed by Victoria Werenkraut)
In this project we are evaluating the magnitude of arthropod arrival through firewood transport in a social, economic and ecological context. The results will promote strategies to minimize their arrival in order to prevent future invasions.
Defensive strategies of leaf-cutter ants against parasitoid attacks
The main objective of my postdoctoral project is to determine how leaf-cutter ants defend themselves against phorid fly parasitoids and what factors affect their defensive behaviors. Specifically, I am studying if (1) leaf-cutter ants...
Effects of ant nests on soil properties and nearby vegetation
Ants, through the building and expansion of their nests, modify the soil physical structure. Additionally, the organic waste that ant produce ncreases the nutrient level of the nearby soil. Using field observations and greenhouse experiments, we study how these soil...
Doctoral Thesis Project: Dispersion of native and exotic seeds by ants in the Patagonian steppe
Implications for the restoration of degraded areas and invasion of exotic plants.
We work as an ant colony
We do not have central control, but we set up interaction networks through research projects
Latest news
Inefficiency versus interference in the cooperative transport: coordination costs
The transportation of objects, including food, can fluctuate between inefficiency and interference, depending of the amount of ants involved in the transport process and their experience. We study the factors that may determine the inefficiency behaviors,...
Resolution of traffic conflicts in leaf-cutting ants: foraging trail design and ant behavior in the trails
Leaf-cutting ants use a trail system to transport leaf fragments to their nests. This foraging trail system can be considered as their extended phenotype, and thus is under natural selection to reduce their costs and increase their benefits. In this...
Ant predators
Leaf-cutting ants can become important pests for agriculture and forestation. Therefore, knowing their natural enemies is very important. This project focuses on armadillos, which are omnivorous mammals that include several insects in their diets, and...