Tandem running

Definition

A form of recruitment communication in social insects in which a knowledgeable forager physically guides a naive nestmate to a resource by maintaining antennal or tactile contact while walking; the follower maintains contact with the leader's abdomen or legs, stopping when contact is broken and resuming only after tactile reconnection.

Etymology

From Latin tandem 'at length, finally' (extended to 'one after another') + English running; describes the sequential, linked locomotion of leader and follower.

Example

In Temnothorax albipennis ants, a successful forager that discovers a new food source returns to the nest and performs tandem running to recruit additional workers; the leader pauses periodically to allow the follower to memorize visual landmarks along the route, enabling the follower to subsequently lead its own tandem runs.

Synonyms

• tandem recruitment
• tandem calling

Related Terms

• Trophallaxis
• trail pheromone
• Waggle dance
• social learning
• recruitment
• leader-follower dynamics
• Temnothorax

Usage Notes

Distinguished from other recruitment mechanisms: slower than trail pheromone recruitment but faster than independent searching; more costly in time than pheromone trails but provides opportunity for information transfer and route learning. The term is primarily used for ants and termites; superficially similar behaviors in other taxa are usually described with different terminology. Some authors reserve 'tandem running' for ants and use 'tandem walking' for termites, though usage varies.