An ambiguous function of an alarm pheromone in the collective displays of the Australian meat ant, <i>Iridomyrmex purpureus</i>

Abstract

Abstract Alarm pheromones, which have been documented in many species of ants, are thought to elicit responses related to aggressive or defensive behaviour. The volatile odour 6‐methyl‐5‐hepten‐2‐one is described as an alarm pheromone in several species of ants, including the Australian meat ant, Iridomyrmex purpureus . The alarm pheromone is released by displaying workers that aggregate in the characteristic collective display grounds, located mid‐way between colonies or near contested food trees. Workers are typically more aggressive at the latter location, and the alarm pheromone may regulate the collective level of aggression. We investigated this possibility by exposing displaying workers to synthesised alarm pheromone 6‐methyl‐5‐hepten‐2‐one in a field experiment, and measuring their aggressive behaviour. We found no evidence that exposure to synthesised alarm pheromone caused changes in the aggressive level of workers. Subsequent field experiments revealed that the pheromone functions as an attractant, thereby increasing the density of displaying workers. More densely populated workers also display more aggressively, indicating that the interaction rate of displaying workers may determine the level of aggression in collective displays. This underlying mechanism can explain why displaying ants are more aggressive at the more densely populated food‐tree locations than those displaying at locations midway between two neighbouring colony nest sites.