Behavioral Ecology: Following the army ant-following birds
3 November 2011On the OUPBlog, Corina Logan, co-author of a paper recently published in Behavioral Ecology, discusses her field research into the behaviour of tropical birds that follow army ants to food.
"It’s 4:00 am and I can’t believe I’m (just barely) awake. Not only that, but I have to go out there in the cold and rain. It’s so cold! I’m in the tropics – it’s not supposed to be cold in the tropics. I pull on my clothes (quickly, while still hiding under the covers), grab my gear, and head out into the darkness. I hurriedly walk up the muddy path; time is of the essence. I find the trail into the woods, which is marked with flags, and I hike across the hilly terrain through the dense tropical forest, arriving at my field site about 30 minutes before dawn – just in time. I go over to the army ant nest (called a bivouac because it is made from the interlocked bodies of the ants themselves) and look for activity, being careful not to step near any ants (I learned that lesson a couple of days ago when I decided that I could watch the ants while wearing trainers and not Wellington boots. Ouch. The soldiers have very strong mandibles and they leave a pheromone trail on you which attracts more soldiers by the masses). Just a few ants milling around outside of the hole. I walk about 5 meters away and sit down on a piece of plastic so I stay dry, then I open my umbrella above me. I hold as still as I can while searching the darkness around the army ant nest with my bare eyes and binoculars. My prize? Bivouac-checking birds."
For the full blog post, visit: Following the army ant-following birds
Read the paper: A case of mental time travel in ant-following birds?
Published in Behavorial Ecology, Advance Access, 21 June 2011.