Conflict resolution strategies in meat ants (Iridomyrmex purpureus): Ritualised displays versus lethal fighting

Abstract

Our understanding of the evolution of display as a conflict strategy derives from extensive theoretical and empirical studies of non-social animals. Surprisingly, such an approach has seldom been adopted for the study of social insects. In this study, we explored the circumstances under which meat ants (Iridomyrmex purpureus) display or engage in potentially lethal fights. Colonies of meat ants establish territories in which the boundaries are lined by workers engaged in ritual displays. Although more common, ritual displays are not the only means of resolving conflicts in meat ants; sometimes fights are fierce and result in injury or death. We show, using field experiments, that when two an..