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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. During what era did Crozier argue that scientists should not "discard kin selection in favor of parental manipulation" altering the way most scientists deal with kin selection?

2. From what gland do ants lay odor trails leading to food sources?

3. Which of the following is NOT a category that authors Holldobler and Wilson claim to be extremely complex in ant colonies?

4. At what university were radioactive ants found in the 1960s?

5. What are repletes concerned with?

Short Essay Questions

1. What realization did scientists make about the Myrmica ants ability to differentiate larvae from eggs?

2. What is the Hymenoptera order, and how do ants fit in this order?

3. What controversy surrounds the ant fossil discovered in the Victoria, Australia by Jell and Duncan in 1986?

4. What is a "super colonial" ant colony?

5. What malleable criteria were used to decide that ant colonies were units rather than large groups of individuals?

6. How do male ants function within the colony caste system?

7. What are "sibling species?"

8. What are some of the ways ant colonies control the numbers of queens present in their colony?

9. Why are male ants typically neglected in taxonomic studies?

10. How do ant colonies treat foreign ants that wander in the nest?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Ants communicate with one another in a variety of ways, and for a variety of purposes. List at least eight of the twelve categories of ant communication and explain which of these is the most common in ant colonies. Explain the four different ways through which ants communicate using their bodies, and describe each method of communication.

Essay Topic 2

Pheromones are considered the most important asset to ant communication. Describe two different ways in which ants communicate using their pheromones. Explain how pheromones are emitted from the ant's body in both liquid and gas forms.

Essay Topic 3

The process of brooding young larvae is one of the most important processes in an ant colony. Explain the role the queen ant has in breeding her young. Explain the role worker ants have in the brooding. Finally, explain how chemical alteration of the larvae affects their brooding process.

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