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.2018 Apr 11;8(1):5825.
doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-23652-4.

Asymmetric ommatidia count and behavioural lateralization in the ant Temnothorax albipennis

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Asymmetric ommatidia count and behavioural lateralization in the ant Temnothorax albipennis

Edmund R Hunt et al. Sci Rep..

Abstract

Workers of the house-hunting ant Temnothorax albipennis rely on visual edge following and landmark recognition to navigate their rocky environment, and they also exhibit a leftward turning bias when exploring unknown nest sites. We used electron microscopy to count the number of ommatidia composing the compound eyes of workers, males and queens, to make an approximate assessment of their relative sampling resolution; and to establish whether there is an asymmetry in the number of ommatidia composing the workers' eyes, which might provide an observable, mechanistic explanation for the turning bias. We hypothesise that even small asymmetries in relative visual acuity between left and right eyes could be magnified by developmental experience into a symmetry-breaking turning preference that results in the inferior eye pointing toward the wall. Fifty-six workers were examined: 45% had more ommatidia in the right eye, 36% more in the left, and 20% an equal number. A tentative connection between relative ommatidia count for each eye and turning behaviour was identified, with a stronger assessment of behavioural lateralization before imaging and a larger sample suggested for further work. There was a clear sexual dimorphism in ommatidia counts between queens and males.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The branching nest site used to select ‘left-biased’ and ‘right-biased’ ants (see also Huntet al. 2014)
Figure 2
Figure 2
Example SEM images of colony 1 workers for the two branch choices. 600 × magnification. (A) Left turn, left eye: Om. = 78. (B) Left turn, right eye: Om. = 80. (C) Right turn, left eye: Om. = 76. (D) Right turn, right eye: Om. = 72.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Colony 1 queen and male. 500 × magnification. There is significant uncertainty (estimated to be 10–15%) for the ommatidia counts from the male eyes, since it is difficult to identify them all from one image (time permitting in future research will allow combination of multiple images). We use a minimum count (visible only) for statistical purposes. (A) Colony 1 queen, left eye: Om. = 192. (B) Colony 1 queen, right eye: Om. = 187. (C) Colony 1 male, left eye: Om. (counted) = 274, estimate: 300. (D) Colony 1 male, right eye: Om. (counted) = 281, estimate: 310.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The total number of ommatidia (left plus right), by direction turned. The medians are not different for the two directions.
Figure 5
Figure 5
The total ommatidia count by colony and direction turned. Colony 3 has a lower total ommatidia count than 1 and 4.
Figure 6
Figure 6
The proportion of total ommatidia on the left eye, by direction turned. Ant 48 (Colony 4, left turn) is an outlier, with 78 ommatidia in its left eye and 71 in its right (52.3% on the left).
Figure 7
Figure 7
The proportion of ommatidia in the left eye, by colony.
Figure 8
Figure 8
The ommatidia count per eye for the queen and male caste. The male count is a minimum, and is an underestimate of around 10% of the true total.
Figure 9
Figure 9
The ommatidia count for the three castes inTemnothorax albipennis: workers, queens, males. Workers/L and /R refers to workers that turned left or right. The male ommatidia counts are estimates and hence an asymmetry is not established. We estimate the true mean for males is around 300.
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