Group and mass recruitment in ant colonies: the influence of contact rates

The influence of contact rates on the efficiency (the ability to exploit a profitable environment) and flexibility (the ability to track down a changing environment) of foraging in ants is studied theoretically in the case where foraging relies on a mixture of group and mass recruitment. It is shown that a combination of efficiency and flexibility can be reached across a range of group sizes if (1) mass recruitment is combined with a low level of group recruitment, and (2) contact rates are weakly regulated. These results are discussed in relation to empirical work. Copyright 1998 Academic Press