Nest Digging by Leaf-Cutting Ants: Effect of Group Size and Functional Structures

Table 1

Digging rate (g), area excavated (mm²), and volume of soil excavated (cm³) by groups of workers (5, 10, 20, and 40), as a function of elapsed time.

Group size	Volume of soil (g)					Load/worker ratio	Trips	Area	Volume
	12	24	36	48	total
5	3.0	1.5	0.0	0.0	4.5	0.90	53	828.5 ± 436	7.36 ± 4.1
10	4.5	1.1	0.0	0.0	5.6	0.56	33	1066.0 ± 464.64	7.37 ± 3.5
20	9.8	0.3	0.0	0.0	10.1	0.50	30	1176.5 ± 461.01	11.40 ± 4.5
40	21.6	1.7	1.1	2.4	26.9	0.67	40	4530.4 ± 1863.67	36.33 ± 12.7

*Load/worker ratio = total soil volume/number of workers in the group; **trips = (load/worker ratio)/0.017 (average mass of soil pellets).