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Myrmecology

November 25, 2023

Myrmecology (/mɜːrmɪˈkɒlədʒi/; from Greek: μύρμηξ, myrmex, "ant" and λόγος, logos, "study") is a branch of entomology focusing on the scientific study of ants. Some early myrmecologists considered ant society as the ideal form of society and sought to find solutions to human problems by studying them.[citation needed] Ants continue to be a model of choice for the study of questions on the evolution of social systems because of their complex and varied forms of eusociality (social organization). Their diversity and prominence in ecosystems also has made them important components in the study of biodiversity and conservation. Recently, ant colonies are also studied and modeled for their relevance in machine learning, complex interactive networks, stochasticity of encounter and interaction networks, parallel computing, and other computing fields.[1]

Meat ant (Iridomyrmex purpureus) feeding on honey

History edit

The word myrmecology was coined by William Morton Wheeler (1865–1937), although human interest in the life of ants goes back further, with numerous ancient folk references. The earliest scientific thinking based on observation of ant life was that of Auguste Forel (1848–1931), a Swiss psychologist who initially was interested in ideas of instinct, learning, and society. In 1874 he wrote a book on the ants of Switzerland, Les fourmis de la Suisse, and he named his home La Fourmilière (the ant colony). Forel's early studies included attempts to mix species of ants in a colony. He noted polydomy and monodomy in ants and compared them with the structure of nations.[2]

Wheeler looked at ants in a new light, in terms of their social organization, and in 1910 he delivered a lecture at Woods Hole on "The Ant-Colony as an Organism", which pioneered the idea of superorganisms. Wheeler considered trophallaxis or the sharing of food within the colony as the core of ant society. This was studied using a dye in the food and observing how it spread in the colony.[2]

Some, such as Horace Donisthorpe, worked on the systematics of ants. This tradition continued in many parts of the world until advances in other aspects of biology were made. The advent of genetics, ideas in ethology and its evolution led to new thought. This line of enquiry was pioneered by E. O. Wilson, who founded the field termed as sociobiology.[2]

Interdisciplinary application edit

Ants often are studied by engineers for biomimicry and by network engineers for more efficient networking. It is not known clearly how ants manage to avoid congestions and how they optimize their movements to move in most efficient ways without a central authority that would send out orders. There already have been many applications in structure design and networking that have been developed from studying ants, but the efficiency of human-created systems is still not close to the efficiency of ant colonies. Furthermore, there are efforts to use ant algorithms and the behavioral strategies of ants in modern management.[3]

Myrmecologists in fiction edit

The black and white 1954 Warner Bros. movie Them! describes the visiting expert Dr. Harold Medford (played by Edmund Gwenn) from the Department of Agriculture in Washington DC as a myrmecologist.

Dr. Hank Pym is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics and the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

List of notable myrmecologists edit

Note: Names are listed alphabetically.

  • Ernest André (1838–1911), French entomologist
  • Thomas Borgmeier (1892–1975), German-Brazilian theologian and entomologist
  • Murray S. Blum (1929–2015), American chemical ecologist, an expert on pheromones
  • William L. Brown Jr. (1922–1997), American entomologist
  • Giovanni Cobelli (1849–1937), Italian entomologist, director of the Rovereto museum
  • Arthur Charles Cole Jr. (1908–1955), American entomologist
  • Walter Cecil Crawley, British entomologist
  • William Steel Creighton (1902–1973), American entomologist
  • Horace Donisthorpe (1870–1951), British myrmecologist, named several new species
  • Carlo Emery (1848–1925), Italian entomologist
  • Johan Christian Fabricius (1745–1808), Danish entomologist, student of Linnaeus
  • Auguste-Henri Forel (1848–1931), Swiss myrmecologist, studied brain structure of humans and ants
  • Émil August Goeldi (1859–1917), Swiss-Brazilian naturalist and zoologist
  • William Gould (1715–1799), described by Horace Donisthorpe as "the father of British myrmecology"
  • Robert Edmond Gregg (1912–1991), American entomologist
  • Thomas Caverhill Jerdon (1811–1872), British physician, zoologist and botanist
  • Walter Wolfgang Kempf (1920–1976), Brazilian myrmecologist
  • Heinrich Kutter (1896–1990), Swiss myrmecologist
  • Nicolas Kusnezov also as Nikolaj Nikolajevich Kuznetsov-Ugamsky (1898–1963)
  • Pierre André Latreille (1762–1833) French entomologist
  • Sir John Lubbock (the 1st Lord and Baron Avebury) (1834–1913), wrote on hymenoptera sense organs
  • William T. Mann (1886–1960), American entomologist
  • Gustav Mayr (1830–1908), Austrian entomologist and professor in Pest and Vienna, specialised in Hymenoptera
  • Carlo Menozzi also as Carlo Minozzi (1892–1943), Italian entomologist
  • William Nylander (1822–1899), Finnish botanist, biologist, mycologist, entomologist and myrmecologist
  • Basil Derek Wragge-Morley (1920–1969), research included genetics, social behaviour of animals, and the behaviour of agricultural pests
  • Fergus O'Rourke (1923– 2010), Irish zoologist
  • Julius Roger (1819–1865), German physician, entomologist and folklorist
  • Felix Santschi (1872–1940), Swiss entomologist
  • Theodore Christian Schneirla (1902–1968), American animal psychologist
  • Frederick Smith (1805–1879), worked in the zoology department of the British Museum from 1849, specialising in the Hymenoptera
  • Roy R. Snelling (1934–2008), American entomologist credited with many important finds of rare or new ant species
  • Erich Wasmann (1859–1931), Austrian entomologist
  • Neal Albert Weber (1908–2001), American myrmecologist
  • John Obadiah Westwood (1805–1893), English entomologist and archaeologist also noted for his artistic talents
  • William Morton Wheeler (1865–1937), curator of invertebrate zoology in the American Museum of Natural History, described many new species
  • Edward Osborne Wilson (1929–2021), Pulitzer Prize winning American myrmecologist, revolutionized the field of sociobiology

Contemporary myrmecologists edit

  • Donat Agosti, Swiss entomologist
  • Cesare Baroni Urbani, Swiss ant taxonomist
  • Barry Bolton, English ant taxonomist
  • Alfred Buschinger, German myrmecologist
  • Henri Cagniant, French myrmecologist
  • John S. Clark, Scottish myrmecologist
  • Cedric Alex Collingwood, British entomologist
  • Mark Amidon Deyrup, American myrmecologist
  • Francesc Xavier Espadaler i Gelabert, Spanish myrmecologist, specialist in Mediterranean and Macaronesian ants and in invasive species
  • Deborah Gordon (1955–), studies ant colony behavior and ecology
  • William H. Gotwald Jr., American entomologist
  • Michael J. Greene studies interactions between chemical cues and behavior patterns
  • Bert Hölldobler (1936–), Pulitzer Prize winning German myrmecologist
  • Laurent Keller (1961–), Swiss evolutionary biologist and myrmecologist
  • John E. Lattke
  • John T. Longino, American entomologist
  • Mark W. Moffett (1958–), American entomologist and photographer
  • Corrie S. Moreau, American evolutionary biologist and entomologist, wrote on evolution and diversification of ants
  • Justin Orvel Schmidt, American entomologist, studies the chemical and behavioral defenses of ants, wasps, and arachnids
  • Bernhard Seifert, German entomologist
  • Steven O. Shattuck, American-Australian entomologist
  • Marion R. Smith, American entomologist
  • Robert W. Taylor, Australian myrmecologist
  • Alberto Tinaut Ranera, Spanish myrmecologist
  • Walter R. Tschinkel, American myrmecologist
  • Laurel D. Hansen, (1940–) American myrmecologist, studies carpenter ant biology and urban management
  • James C. Trager, American myrmecologist
  • Gary J. Umphrey, American biostatistician and myrmecologist
  • Philip S. Ward, American entomologist
  • Daniel Kronauer American myrmecologist
  • Alejandro G. Farji-Brener, Argentinean myrmecologist
  • Susanne Foitzik, German myrmecologist

Related terms edit

  • Myrmecochorous (adj.) dispersed by ants
  • Myrmecophagous (adj.) feeding on ants
  • Myrmecophile (n.) an organism that habitually shares an ant nest, myrmecophilous (adj.), myrmecophily (n.)
  • Myrmidons (n.) ant-men in Metamorphoses and in Homer's Iliad, where they are Achilles' warriors

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ Deborah Gordon (2010). Ant Encounters Interaction Networks and Colony Behavior. New Jersey: Princeton University Press. p. 143. ISBN 978-0691138794.
  2. ^ a b c Sleigh, Charlotte (2007) Six Legs Better: A Cultural History of Myrmecology. The Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 0-8018-8445-4
  3. ^ Fladerer, Johannes-Paul; Kurzmann, Ernst (2019). The Wisdom of the Many: How to create Self-Organisation and how to use Collective Intelligence in Companies and in Society From Management to ManagemANT. BOOKS ON DEMAND. ISBN 9783750422421.

External links edit

 
Look up myrmecology in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

November 25, 2023
myrmecology, ɜːr, from, greek, μύρμηξ, myrmex, λόγος, logos, study, branch, entomology, focusing, scientific, study, ants, some, early, myrmecologists, considered, society, ideal, form, society, sought, find, solutions, human, problems, studying, them, citatio. Myrmecology m ɜːr m ɪ ˈ k ɒ l e dʒ i from Greek myrmh3 myrmex ant and logos logos study is a branch of entomology focusing on the scientific study of ants Some early myrmecologists considered ant society as the ideal form of society and sought to find solutions to human problems by studying them citation needed Ants continue to be a model of choice for the study of questions on the evolution of social systems because of their complex and varied forms of eusociality social organization Their diversity and prominence in ecosystems also has made them important components in the study of biodiversity and conservation Recently ant colonies are also studied and modeled for their relevance in machine learning complex interactive networks stochasticity of encounter and interaction networks parallel computing and other computing fields 1 Meat ant Iridomyrmex purpureus feeding on honey Contents 1 History 2 Interdisciplinary application 3 Myrmecologists in fiction 4 List of notable myrmecologists 4 1 Contemporary myrmecologists 5 Related terms 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksHistory editThe word myrmecology was coined by William Morton Wheeler 1865 1937 although human interest in the life of ants goes back further with numerous ancient folk references The earliest scientific thinking based on observation of ant life was that of Auguste Forel 1848 1931 a Swiss psychologist who initially was interested in ideas of instinct learning and society In 1874 he wrote a book on the ants of Switzerland Les fourmis de la Suisse and he named his home La Fourmiliere the ant colony Forel s early studies included attempts to mix species of ants in a colony He noted polydomy and monodomy in ants and compared them with the structure of nations 2 Wheeler looked at ants in a new light in terms of their social organization and in 1910 he delivered a lecture at Woods Hole on The Ant Colony as an Organism which pioneered the idea of superorganisms Wheeler considered trophallaxis or the sharing of food within the colony as the core of ant society This was studied using a dye in the food and observing how it spread in the colony 2 Some such as Horace Donisthorpe worked on the systematics of ants This tradition continued in many parts of the world until advances in other aspects of biology were made The advent of genetics ideas in ethology and its evolution led to new thought This line of enquiry was pioneered by E O Wilson who founded the field termed as sociobiology 2 Interdisciplinary application editThis section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed April 2018 Learn how and when to remove this template message Ants often are studied by engineers for biomimicry and by network engineers for more efficient networking It is not known clearly how ants manage to avoid congestions and how they optimize their movements to move in most efficient ways without a central authority that would send out orders There already have been many applications in structure design and networking that have been developed from studying ants but the efficiency of human created systems is still not close to the efficiency of ant colonies Furthermore there are efforts to use ant algorithms and the behavioral strategies of ants in modern management 3 Myrmecologists in fiction editThe black and white 1954 Warner Bros movie Them describes the visiting expert Dr Harold Medford played by Edmund Gwenn from the Department of Agriculture in Washington DC as a myrmecologist Dr Hank Pym is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics and the Marvel Cinematic Universe List of notable myrmecologists editNote Names are listed alphabetically Ernest Andre 1838 1911 French entomologist Thomas Borgmeier 1892 1975 German Brazilian theologian and entomologist Murray S Blum 1929 2015 American chemical ecologist an expert on pheromones William L Brown Jr 1922 1997 American entomologist Giovanni Cobelli 1849 1937 Italian entomologist director of the Rovereto museum Arthur Charles Cole Jr 1908 1955 American entomologist Walter Cecil Crawley British entomologist William Steel Creighton 1902 1973 American entomologist Horace Donisthorpe 1870 1951 British myrmecologist named several new species Carlo Emery 1848 1925 Italian entomologist Johan Christian Fabricius 1745 1808 Danish entomologist student of Linnaeus Auguste Henri Forel 1848 1931 Swiss myrmecologist studied brain structure of humans and ants Emil August Goeldi 1859 1917 Swiss Brazilian naturalist and zoologist William Gould 1715 1799 described by Horace Donisthorpe as the father of British myrmecology Robert Edmond Gregg 1912 1991 American entomologist Thomas Caverhill Jerdon 1811 1872 British physician zoologist and botanist Walter Wolfgang Kempf 1920 1976 Brazilian myrmecologist Heinrich Kutter 1896 1990 Swiss myrmecologist Nicolas Kusnezov also as Nikolaj Nikolajevich Kuznetsov Ugamsky 1898 1963 Pierre Andre Latreille 1762 1833 French entomologist Sir John Lubbock the 1st Lord and Baron Avebury 1834 1913 wrote on hymenoptera sense organs William T Mann 1886 1960 American entomologist Gustav Mayr 1830 1908 Austrian entomologist and professor in Pest and Vienna specialised in Hymenoptera Carlo Menozzi also as Carlo Minozzi 1892 1943 Italian entomologist William Nylander 1822 1899 Finnish botanist biologist mycologist entomologist and myrmecologist Basil Derek Wragge Morley 1920 1969 research included genetics social behaviour of animals and the behaviour of agricultural pests Fergus O Rourke 1923 2010 Irish zoologist Julius Roger 1819 1865 German physician entomologist and folklorist Felix Santschi 1872 1940 Swiss entomologist Theodore Christian Schneirla 1902 1968 American animal psychologist Frederick Smith 1805 1879 worked in the zoology department of the British Museum from 1849 specialising in the Hymenoptera Roy R Snelling 1934 2008 American entomologist credited with many important finds of rare or new ant species Erich Wasmann 1859 1931 Austrian entomologist Neal Albert Weber 1908 2001 American myrmecologist John Obadiah Westwood 1805 1893 English entomologist and archaeologist also noted for his artistic talents William Morton Wheeler 1865 1937 curator of invertebrate zoology in the American Museum of Natural History described many new species Edward Osborne Wilson 1929 2021 Pulitzer Prize winning American myrmecologist revolutionized the field of sociobiologyContemporary myrmecologists edit Donat Agosti Swiss entomologist Cesare Baroni Urbani Swiss ant taxonomist Barry Bolton English ant taxonomist Alfred Buschinger German myrmecologist Henri Cagniant French myrmecologist John S Clark Scottish myrmecologist Cedric Alex Collingwood British entomologist Mark Amidon Deyrup American myrmecologist Francesc Xavier Espadaler i Gelabert Spanish myrmecologist specialist in Mediterranean and Macaronesian ants and in invasive species Deborah Gordon 1955 studies ant colony behavior and ecology William H Gotwald Jr American entomologist Michael J Greene studies interactions between chemical cues and behavior patterns Bert Holldobler 1936 Pulitzer Prize winning German myrmecologist Laurent Keller 1961 Swiss evolutionary biologist and myrmecologist John E Lattke John T Longino American entomologist Mark W Moffett 1958 American entomologist and photographer Corrie S Moreau American evolutionary biologist and entomologist wrote on evolution and diversification of ants Justin Orvel Schmidt American entomologist studies the chemical and behavioral defenses of ants wasps and arachnids Bernhard Seifert German entomologist Steven O Shattuck American Australian entomologist Marion R Smith American entomologist Robert W Taylor Australian myrmecologist Alberto Tinaut Ranera Spanish myrmecologist Walter R Tschinkel American myrmecologist Laurel D Hansen 1940 American myrmecologist studies carpenter ant biology and urban management James C Trager American myrmecologist Gary J Umphrey American biostatistician and myrmecologist Philip S Ward American entomologist Daniel Kronauer American myrmecologist Alejandro G Farji Brener Argentinean myrmecologist Susanne Foitzik German myrmecologistRelated terms editMyrmecochorous adj dispersed by ants Myrmecophagous adj feeding on ants Myrmecophile n an organism that habitually shares an ant nest myrmecophilous adj myrmecophily n Myrmidons n ant men in Metamorphoses and in Homer s Iliad where they are Achilles warriorsSee also editAnt keeping Bees Wasps and Ants Recording Society Formicarium also known as ant farm Stigmergy a biological mechanism attributed to the coordination of ants and other social insects Myrmecological News an independent international non profit scientific journal devoted to ant research International Union for the Study of Social Insects Ant colony optimization Swarm intelligenceReferences edit Deborah Gordon 2010 Ant Encounters Interaction Networks and Colony Behavior New Jersey Princeton University Press p 143 ISBN 978 0691138794 a b c Sleigh Charlotte 2007 Six Legs Better A Cultural History of Myrmecology The Johns Hopkins University Press ISBN 0 8018 8445 4 Fladerer Johannes Paul Kurzmann Ernst 2019 The Wisdom of the Many How to create Self Organisation and how to use Collective Intelligence in Companies and in Society From Management to ManagemANT BOOKS ON DEMAND ISBN 9783750422421 External links edit nbsp Look up myrmecology in Wiktionary the free dictionary Documentary about myrmecology Archived 6 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine Portals nbsp Insects nbsp Biology Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Myrmecology amp oldid 1125463997, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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