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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. What are bead glands also known as?

2. What do leafcutter ants primarily feed off?

3. In a weaver ant community, which of the following is the only group of ants exempt from nest building duties?

4. During his studies in Louisiana, what system did Moser find ant fungus growing ant nests?

5. According to Pisarski's classification, what tier of workers will fight with alien workers?

Short Essay Questions

1. What amusing anecdote does V. Wolfgang von Hagen give about leafcutter ants?

2. How do Solenopsis flies affect the productivity of Apocephalus ants in Texas?

3. What is an ant garden?

4. What modifications must a parasite's body undergo in order to live successfully off a host's body?

5. What type of ant predator did Levieux discover by digging under the soil on the Ivory Coast in 1983?

6. What interesting collecting method did Harlow Shapely use when preserving ants?

7. How did Moser discover ventilation systems in ant nests in Louisiana?

8. What is the first phase of nest building in a weaver ant colony? Why does this phase require teamwork?

9. Why are Proceratium ants considered the most specialized of all egg predators?

10. What is dulosis? How is it a form of symbiosis?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The role of the queen within an ant society is one that Wilson demands much focus on throughout the text. Explain the role of the queen in starting an ant colony. What role does the queen play in decision-making for the colony as a whole? Finally, explain how the role of the queen changes as the society becomes more successful, and which members of the colony take over the decision-making process.

Essay Topic 2

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 3

One interesting way that ant colonies choose to expand is by becoming polygynus. Define a polygynus society. Explain the different ways colonies adopt a new queen and become polygynus. Finally, explain how the power within a polygynus society is affected as it grows? How that dispersed power affects organization within the colony.

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