Jantando fora com os plebeus: rainhas de Camponotus novogranadensis Mayr, 1870 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) alimentando-se fora do ninho com operárias

Resumo

An ant colony usually shows a division into reproductive (queens and alate males) and nonreproductive (workers and soldiers) castes. In most ant species, the tasks outside of a mature colony are performed predominately by the non-reproductive castes, and the reproductive queens usually do not leave the nest after founding. Therefore, queens are feed by workers that, upon returning to the nest, regurgitate a portion of stored fluid. However, queens of Camponotus novogranadensis Mayr, 1870 were recorded feeding on the carcass of a mourning gecko outside the nest with nestmate major and minor workers in a disturbed habitat in Belém, Pará state, northern Brazil.