Camponotus pennsylvanicus (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) populations in Georgia: Natural history insights from time and space

Social insects live within, and are subject to, the confines of time and space. For the past four years we have studied black carpenter ant (Camponotus pennsylvanicus) colonies in Georgia, USA from temporal and spatial perspectives using maternal and nuclear DNA markers. We used molecular markers to examine population structure from the standpoint of kinship, gene flow, maternity and physical topology. We report our observations and discuss implications of these observations for black carpenter ant dispersal, treatment and control.