Most ant colonies live in a single nest (monodomy) or a group of nests (polydomy). However, the length of time for which nests are inhabited varies significantly between different species. Although colonies of some species frequently move nest sites, in others, colonies inhabit the same nest or group of nests for many years. Similarly, in some species foraging and resource-sharing trails are highly dynamic, while in other species trails are used for years. Wood ants are a group of keystone species that inhabit many northern hemisphere woodlands, where they are important predators of invertebrates and indirectly act as herbivores through the farming of aphids. Wood ant colonies exhibit both monodomy and polydomy, and can inhabit nests for many years. Trails in wood ant colonies are also thought to be relatively stable. However, information about colony dynamics is mostly anecdotal as, until now, no longitudinal datasets have been collected. In this study, we collected data from ten polydomous wood ant colonies annually for 8 years and a subset of four colonies 16 times over 2 years. We found that most polydomous wood ant nests are abandoned in the first 2 years after being constructed and are more likely to be abandoned in the latter part of the active season. However, the rate of nest abandonment decreases after 2 years and is lower in larger nests. We also found that wood ant trails are relatively static within an active season and become more static later in the season as trails become established.

中文翻译：

---

多栖木蚁种群的巢穴占用、小径网络和觅食的纵向研究

大多数蚁群生活在一个单独的巢穴（monodomy）或一组巢穴（polydomy）中。然而，不同物种之间筑巢的时间长短差异很大。尽管某些物种的群落经常移动巢穴，但在其他物种中，群落居住在同一个巢穴或一组巢穴中多年。同样，在某些物种中，觅食和资源共享路径是高度动态的，而在其他物种中，路径已使用多年。木蚁是一群栖息于北半球许多林地的关键物种，它们是无脊椎动物的重要捕食者，并通过养殖蚜虫间接充当食草动物。木蚁群既表现出单一性也表现出多重性，并且可以在巢穴中栖息多年。木蚁群落的踪迹也被认为是相对稳定的。然而，关于菌落动态的信息大多是轶事，因为直到现在，还没有收集到纵向数据集。在这项研究中，我们在 8 年内每年从 10 个多角木蚁群中收集数据，在 2 年内收集了 4 个蚁群的子集 16 次。我们发现，大多数多角木蚁巢在建成后的前 2 年内被遗弃，更有可能在活动季节的后期被遗弃。然而，2 年后弃巢率下降，并且在较大的巢穴中较低。我们还发现，木蚁的踪迹在活跃的季节内相对静止，随着踪迹的建立，在季节后期变得更加静止。我们在 8 年内每年从 10 个多角木蚁群中收集数据，在 2 年内收集了 4 个蚁群的子集 16 次。我们发现，大多数多角木蚁巢在建成后的前 2 年内被遗弃，更有可能在活动季节的后期被遗弃。然而，2 年后弃巢率下降，并且在较大的巢穴中较低。我们还发现，木蚁的踪迹在活跃的季节内相对静止，随着踪迹的建立，在季节后期变得更加静止。我们在 8 年内每年从 10 个多角木蚁群中收集数据，在 2 年内收集了 4 个蚁群的子集 16 次。我们发现，大多数多角木蚁巢在建成后的前 2 年内被遗弃，更有可能在活动季节的后期被遗弃。然而，2 年后弃巢率下降，并且在较大的巢穴中较低。我们还发现，木蚁的踪迹在活跃的季节内相对静止，随着踪迹的建立，在季节后期变得更加静止。2 年后弃巢率下降，在较大的巢穴中较低。我们还发现，木蚁的踪迹在活跃的季节内相对静止，随着踪迹的建立，在季节后期变得更加静止。2 年后弃巢率下降，在较大的巢穴中较低。我们还发现，木蚁的踪迹在活跃的季节内相对静止，随着踪迹的建立，在季节后期变得更加静止。