Open and closed economies as possible alternative strategies to resource heterogeneity in ants

Ant colonies have either a single nest (monodomy) or multiple nests (polydomy). A challenge is to explain their adaptive significane, specifying costs and benefits of each colony type. An explanation for ant polydomy is adaptation to spatially heterogenous environments. With polydomy a colony can exchange complementary nutrition among nests within the entire colony occupying a wide territory. We tested this resource redistribution hypothesis using two closely related species,i.e. the polydomous ant Pheidole megacephala and the monodomous ant Pheidole noda. We put each colony in an artificially polydomous setting with two nests connected by tubes. We provided liquid food lacking protein to one nest and that lacking carbohydrates to the other nest. P. megacephala almost totally failed to produce brood when the connecting tubes were clipped, whereas it improved reproductive performance when the tubes were open. In marked contrast, P. noda, managed to maintain high performance for a long pe..., , # Open and closed economies as possible alternative strategies to resource heterogeneity in ants

We have submitted our raw data (**Fig2A.csv and Fig2B.csv**), Resource redistribution experiment: brood production in P. megacephala and P. noda (**Fig3A.csv and Fig3B.csv**), Resource redistribution experiment: worker survival(**Table1.csv**), Position of brood and workers at the end of resource redistribution experiment(**Table2.csv**), A long-term brood production in P. noda colonies when fed only sugar(**FigS1AB.csv**), Suitability of tryptone as a pure protein source for the growth of P. megacephala and P. noda (**FigS2.csv**), Effect of protein levels on workers survival in P. megacephala.

**Descriptions**

**Fig2A,Fig2B,Fig3A,Fig3B** Data

* Treatment: A (All-nutrition-mixture food). Both nests were provisioned with all nutrition food.
C (One nest was provisioned with protein and another nest was provisioned with sugar)
D1 (negative control 1 of C. Both nests were disconnected ...,