Research

I am interested in the factors that shape social organization in animal societies, and in turn, how social organization shapes ecosystems. There are more than 15,000 ant species, and as many unique societies waiting to be studied. Ant colonies can survive for decades, and many excavate elaborate nests that exceed 2-meters in depth. Much like a coral reef, subterranean ant nests are richly structured in vertical space, and home to countless symbionts that exploit niches along their vertical breadth. Ongoing projects in my lab address 1) the genesis, structure, and function of ant nests, 2) variation in colony productivity, labor allocation, and resilience within ant populations; 3) the hidden diversity, distribution and life history of parasites of ant societies (myrmecophiles), and 4) the chemo-tactile manipulation of ant hosts by these parasites. Much of my field work takes place in Florida’s upland ecosystems, and across the desert Southwest. Research in the lab is rooted in a tradition of organismal biology and natural history, complemented by tools from physiology, molecular and chemical ecology.

Publications

Kwapich C.L., Ross L., Zayas I., Johnston M.A. (2024). A kleptoparasitic beetle larva (Hymenorus dorsalis) exploits vertical division of labor in nests of the Florida harvester ant, Pogonomyrmex badius. Special Issue: The overlooked biodiversity of ant associates, Insectes Sociaux.

Hölldobler B., Kwapich C.L. (2023). Die Gäste der Ameisen: Wie Myrmecophile mit ihren Wirten interagieren. Springer, Berlin/Heidelberg, Germany. 487 pages. ISBN 978-3-662-66526-8

Hölldobler B., Kwapich C.L. (2022). The Guests of Ants: How Myrmecophiles Interact with Their Hosts. Belknap Press, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA. 576 pages. ISBN 9780674265516

Martyn T.E., Kwapich C.L., Kline A., Gornish E. (2022). Granivorous ants prefer small and unprotected seeds: Implications for restoration in arid ecosystems. Restoration Ecology. e13759. https://doi.org/10.1111/rec.13759

Kwapich C.L. (2022). Do parasitic ant crickets (Myrmecophilidae) mimic ant gasters? Metaleptea. 42(1) 27.

Lundgren E.J., Moeller K., Clyne M., Middleton O., Mahoney S., Kwapich C.L. (2022). Cicada nymphs dominate American black bear diet in a desert riparian area. Ecology and Evolution. E8577. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.8577

Kwapich C.L. (2021). Green anole (Anolis carolinensis) eggs associated with nest chambers of the trap-jaw ant Odontomachus brunneus, Southeastern Naturalist, 20(4):119-124. https://doi.org/10.1656/058.020.0409

Kwapich C.L., Hölldobler B., (2019). Destruction of spiderwebs and rescue of ensnared nestmates by the granivorous desert ant Veromessor pergandei. The American Naturalist. https://doi.org/10.1086/704338​

Hölldobler B., Kwapich C.L. (2019) Behavior and exocrine glands in the myrmecophilous beetle Dinarda dentata (Gravenhorst, 1806) (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Aleocharinae). PLoS ONE 14(1): e0210524. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0210524

Hölldobler B., Kwapich C.L., Haight K (2018). Behavior and exocrine glands of the myrmecophilous beetle Lomechusoides strumosus (Fabricius, 1775) (Formerly Lomechusa strumosa) (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae: Aleochorinae). PLoS ONE.13(7): e0200309. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0200309

Kwapich C.L., Valentini G, Hölldobler, B (2018). Non-additive effects of body-size on nest architecture in a polymorphic ant species. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B. 373:1753. PDF doi:10.1098/rstb.2017.0235

Gibson A.H., Kwapich C.L., Lang M. (2018) Chapter 1: Concepts of Biological Individuality in the Early Twentieth Century. Multilevel Selection and the Theory of Evolution: Historical and Conceptual Issues. Book Chapter, edited by Jeler, Ciprian, Palgrave Pivot Publishing, XI:1-151, ISBN 978-3-319-78676-6

Hölldobler, B., Kwapich, C.L. (2017). Amphotis marginata (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae) a highwayman of the ant Lasius fuliginosus. PLoS ONE 12(8): e0180847. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0180847

Kwapich, C.L., Gadau, J., Hölldobler, B. (2017).  Ecological and genetic basis of annual worker production in a desert seed harvesting ant (Veromessor pergandei). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. 71: 110. PDF https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-017-2333-1 

Tschinkel W.R., Kwapich C.L. (2016). The Florida harvester ant, Pogonomyrmex badius, relies on germination to consume large seeds. PLoS ONE. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0166907

Kwapich C.L., Tschinkel W.R. (2016). Limited flexibility and unusual longevity shape forager allocation in the Florida harvester ant (Pogonomyrmex badius), Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, Special Issue: Integrative Analysis of Division of Labor 10.1007/s00265-015-2039-1

Tschinkel W.R., Rink W.J., Kwapich C.L. (2015). Sequential Subterranean Transport of Excavated Sand and Foraged Seeds in Nests of the Harvester Ant, Pogonomyrmex badius. PLoS ONE 10(10): e0139922.  doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0139922

Mason K., Kwapich C. L., Tschinkel W.R. (2015). Respiration, Worker Body Size, Tempo and Activity in Whole Colonies of Ants. Physiological Entomology DOI: 10.1111/phen.12099.

Kwapich C.L. (2014). The influence of demography, development and death on labor allocation in the Florida harvester ant (Pogonomyrmex badius). Doctoral Dissertation. Retrieved from Florida State University digital repository.

Gibson A. H., Kwapich C.L., Lang M. (2013). The Roots of Multilevel Selection Theory: Concepts of Biological Individuality in the Early Twentieth Century. History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences. 35:4.

Rink W.J., Dunbar J.S., Tschinkel W.R., Kwapich C.L., Repp A., Stanon W., Thulman D.K. (2013). Subterranean transport and deposition of quartz by ants in sandy sites relevant to age overestimation in optical luminescence dating.  Journal of Archaeological Science. 40:4, 2217-2226.

Kwapich C.L., Tschinkel W.R. (2013). Demography, demand, death and the seasonal allocation of labor in the Florida harvester ant (Pogonomyrmex badius). Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. 67, 2011–2027. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-013-1611-9

Tschinkel W.R., Murdock T., King J.R., Kwapich C.L. (2012). Ant distribution in relation to ground water in north Florida pine flatwoods. Journal of Insect Science, 12:114.

Books

1. The Guests of Ants: How Myrmecophiles Interact with Their Hosts (2022, Harvard University Press), By Bert Hölldobler and Christina L. Kwapich

https://www.hup.harvard.edu/books/9780674265516

• PROSE award finalist

2. Die Gäste der Ameisen: Wie Myrmecophile mit ihren Wirten interagieren (2023, Springer), By Bert Hölldobler and Christina L. Kwapich

https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-662-66526-8

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