‘Local Genius’ award by Museum of Contemporary Art, Tucson
Organization in groups, how collective behaviors emerge from the actions and interactions of individuals, is the main interest of Anna Dornhaus. As model systems she studies social insect colonies (bumble bees, honey bees and ants) in the laboratory and in the field, as well as using mathematical and individual-based modeling approaches. She investigates mechanisms of coordination in foraging, collective decision-making, task allocation and division of labor. Her recent work has included the role of communication in the allocation of foragers to food sources; the evolution of different recruitment systems in different species of bees, and how ecology shapes these recruitment systems; house hunting strategies in ants; speed-accuracy trade offs in decision-making; and whether different group sizes necessitate different organizational strategies.
Charbonneau D, Dornhaus A 2015 ‘When doing nothing is something. How task allocation strategies compromise between flexibility, efficiency, and inactive agents’, Journal of Bioeconomics 17: 217-242
Goldsby HJ, Dornhaus A, Kerr B, Ofria C 2012 ‘Task-switching costs promote the evolution of division of labor and shifts in individuality’, PNAS 109: 13686-13691
Dornhaus A, Powell S 2010 ‘Foraging and defence strategies’ In: ‘Ant Ecology’, Eds. L Lach, C Parr, K Abbott, Ant Ecology, Oxford University Press
Dornhaus A 2008 ‘Specialization does not predict individual efficiency in an ant’ PLoS Biology 6: e285