Queen Control in Colonies of Weaver Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

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Abstract
The queens of the formicines Oecophylla longinoda (Latreille) and O. smaragdina (F.) are extremely attractive to major workers; stimuli from the head, apparently chemical in nature, induce the workers to regurgitate and present trophic eggs at frequent intervals. The queens suppress the laying of viable eggs but not trophic eggs by the major workers; the effect is evidently mediated by pheromones and persists in the corpses of the queens for as long as 6 months. A new system of intersegmental glands has been discovered in the abdomen of the queen. The propharyngeal, postpharyngeal, maxillary, and mandibular glands are well developed. These cephalic organs may serve in conjunction with the abdominal intersegmental glands as the source of the attractants and control substances.

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