Age-based polyethism, wherein young individuals perform tasks within the nest and later transition to outside activities, is common among many social insects. This division of labor ensures the safety of workers with longer residual lifespans, such as brood caring nurses, and exposes only old individuals to increased extrinsic mortality risks. It appears however, that lifespan in workers is also shaped by intrinsic factors, such as senescence. The transition from nurse to forager is accompanied by various physiological and behavioral changes and seems to represent a crucial step in determining the subsequent life history of the individual. Here we investigate the daily activity pattern and detailed division of labor in colonies of the clonal ant Platythyrea punctata to better understand the dynamics of age polyethism in this peculiar species. We found that P. punctata colonies were mostly active during the day. At night, few workers were observed out of their nests. Workers showed a decrease in brood care and aggressive behavior over time. With increasing age individuals spent more time outside the nest and were more frequently observed walking. However, the transition to outside tasks did not follow a consistent time pattern in all colonies. Workers transitioning at a younger age seemed to die earlier than workers that began to forage later in life.

中文翻译：

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克隆蚂蚁 Platythyrea punctata 的活动模式和行为的年龄依赖性变化

基于年龄的多伦理主义，其中年轻人在巢内执行任务，然后过渡到外部活动，在许多社会昆虫中很常见。这种分工确保了具有较长剩余寿命的工人的安全，例如育儿护士，并且只会使老年人面临更高的外在死亡风险。然而，工人的寿命似乎也受到内在因素的影响，例如衰老。从护士到觅食者的转变伴随着各种生理和行为变化，似乎代表了决定个体随后生活史的关键一步。在这里，我们调查了克隆蚂蚁 Platythyrea punctata 群体中的日常活动模式和详细分工，以更好地了解这种特殊物种中年龄多种族的动态。我们发现 P. punctata 菌落在白天最活跃。到了晚上，很少有人观察到它们的巢穴。随着时间的推移，工人们表现出对育雏和攻击行为的减少。随着年龄的增长，人们在巢外呆的时间越来越长，走路的频率也越来越高。然而，在所有群体中，向外部任务的过渡并没有遵循一致的时间模式。较早过渡的工人似乎比晚年开始觅食的工人更早死亡。在所有群体中，向外部任务的过渡并没有遵循一致的时间模式。较早过渡的工人似乎比晚年开始觅食的工人更早死亡。在所有群体中，向外部任务的过渡并没有遵循一致的时间模式。较早过渡的工人似乎比晚年开始觅食的工人更早死亡。