The Other Insect Societies

The Other Insect Societies PDF Author: James T. Costa
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 0674021630
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 812

Book Description
In his exploration of insect societies that don't fit the eusocial schema, James T. Costa gives these interesting phenomena their due. He synthesizes the scattered literature about social phenomena across the arthropod phylum: beetles and bugs, caterpillars and cockroaches, mantids and membracids, sawflies and spiders.

The Other Insect Societies

The Other Insect Societies PDF Author: James T. Costa
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674021631
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 824

Book Description
In his exploration of insect societies that don't fit the eusocial schema, James T. Costa gives these interesting phenomena their due. He synthesizes the scattered literature about social phenomena across the arthropod phylum: beetles and bugs, caterpillars and cockroaches, mantids and membracids, sawflies and spiders.

The Insect Societies

The Insect Societies PDF Author: Edward O. Wilson
Publisher: Belknap Press
ISBN: 9780674454958
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 548

Book Description
A study of insect sociology, presenting individual investigations of wasps, ants, bees, and termites, and discussing caste, behavior, communication, symbioses, and other topics.

Organization of Insect Societies

Organization of Insect Societies PDF Author: Jürgen Gadau
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674031258
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 638

Book Description
In this landmark volume, an international group of scientists has synthesized their collective expertise and insight into a newly unified vision of insect societies and what they can reveal about how sociality has arisen as an evolutionary strategy. Jürgen Gadau and Jennifer Fewell have assembled leading researchers from the fields of molecular biology, evolutionary genetics, neurophysiology, behavioral ecology, and evolutionary theory to reexamine the question of sociality in insects. Recent advances in social complexity theory and the sequencing of the honeybee genome ensure that this book will be valued by anyone working on sociality in insects. At the same time, the theoretical ideas presented will be of broad-ranging significance to those interested in social evolution and complex systems.

Ants at Work

Ants at Work PDF Author: Deborah Gordon
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 9780393321326
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 188

Book Description
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.

The Superorganism

The Superorganism PDF Author: Bert Holldobler
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 9780393067040
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 556

Book Description
The Pulitzer Prize-winning authors of "The Ants" render the extraordinary lives of the social insects--ants, bees, wasps, and termites--in this visually spectacular volume. 110 color and 100 black-and-white illustrations.

Information Processing in Social Insects

Information Processing in Social Insects PDF Author: Claire Detrain
Publisher: Birkhäuser
ISBN: 3034887396
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 414

Book Description
Claire Detrain, Jean-Louis Deneubourg and Jacques Pasteels Studies on insects have been pioneering in major fields of modern biology. In the 1970 s, research on pheromonal communication in insects gave birth to the dis cipline of chemical ecology and provided a scientific frame to extend this approach to other animal groups. In the 1980 s, the theory of kin selection, which was initially formulated by Hamilton to explain the rise of eusociality in insects, exploded into a field of research on its own and found applications in the under standing of community structures including vertebrate ones. In the same manner, recent studies, which decipher the collective behaviour of insect societies, might be now setting the stage for the elucidation of information processing in animals. Classically, problem solving is assumed to rely on the knowledge of a central unit which must take decisions and collect all pertinent information. However, an alternative method is extensively used in nature: problems can be collectively solved through the behaviour of individuals, which interact with each other and with the environment. The management of information, which is a major issue of animal behaviour, is interesting to study in a social life context, as it raises addi tional questions about conflict-cooperation trade-oft's. Insect societies have proven particularly open to experimental analysis: one can easily assemble or disassemble them and place them in controllable situations in the laboratory.

Discovery Channel Insects & Spiders

Discovery Channel Insects & Spiders PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781563318412
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 196

Book Description
From beetles and butterflies to grasshoppers and honeybees: two entomologists cover the mysterious world of insects, providing helpful tips on caring for insect pets and an identification guide to the most common insect and spider species. Full color.

Social Insects

Social Insects PDF Author: M. V. Brian
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 940095915X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 386

Book Description
Here is a guide to the ecology of social insects. It is intended for general ecologists and entomologists as well as for undergraduates and those about to start research on social insects; even the experienced investigator may find the comparison between different groups of social insects illuminating. Most technical terms are translated into common language as far as can be done without loss of accuracy but scientific names are unavoidable. Readers will become familiar with the name even though they cannot visualize the animal and could reflect that only a very few of the total species have been studied so far! References too are essential and with these it should be possible to travel more deeply into the vast research literature, still increasing monthly. When I have cited an author in another author's paper, this implies that I have not read the original and the second author must take responsi bility for accuracy! Many hands and heads have helped to make this book. I thank all my colleagues past and present for their enduring though critical support, and I thank with special pleasure: E. ]. M. Evesham who fashioned the diagrams; ]. Free, D. J. Stradling and]. P. E. C. Darlington who supplied photographs; D. Y. Brian and R. A. Weller who were meticulous on the linguistic side; and G. Frith and R. M. Jones who collated the references. List of plates 1. Fungus combs of Acromyrmex octospinosus and Macrotermes michaelseni. 13 2. Mouthparts of larval Myrmica.

Insects and Society

Insects and Society PDF Author: Timothy D. Schowalter
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1000731545
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 373

Book Description
Recommended in CHOICE, February 2021 Insects are all around us, outweighing humanity by 17 times. Many are nuisances; they compete with us for food and carry some of our most devastating diseases. Many common pests have been transported worldwide by humans. Yet, some recent reports suggest dramatic declines in some important groups, such as pollinators and detritivores. Should we care? Yes, we should. Without insect pollinators we’d lose 35% of our global food production; without detritivores, we would be buried in un-decayed refuse. Insects are also critical sources for nutritional, medical and industrial products. A world without insects would seem a very different and unpleasant place. So why do insects inspire such fear and loathing? This concise, full-color text challenges many entrenched perceptions about insect effects on our lives. Beginning with a summary of insect biology and ecology that affect their interactions with other organisms, it goes on to describe the various positive and negative ways in which insects and humans interact. The final chapters describe factors that affect insect abundance and approaches to managing insects that balance their impacts. The first textbook to cater directly to those studying Insect and Society or Insect Ecology modules, this book will also be fascinating reading for anyone interested in learning how insects affect human affairs and in applying more sustainable approaches to "managing" insects. This includes K-12 teachers, undergraduate students, amateur entomologists, conservation practitioners, environmentalists, as well as natural resource managers, land use planners and environmental policy makers.