Absence of temporal polyethism in the ponerine ant pachycondyla caffraria (Smith) (hymenoptera: formicidae): Early specialization of the foragers.

In the Ponerine Pachycondyla caffraria the behaviour of workers is independent of age. They leave the nest to forage a few days after eclosion, and some specialization appears in the young foragers. For the first five days, the callow workers stay in the nest chamber; they remain immobile, or groom themselves, or lick the larvae and pupae, which they transport from one part of the nest to another. Six or seven days after eclosion, some of the young workers remain inside the nest and occupy themselves with inside labour, while others leave the nest to forage, and collect sugar water or hunt for prey. The frequency of some behavioural acts which are performed by the young inside workers increases or decreases with age.