Overwintering & cold-hardiness of ants in the northeast of Asia

This monograph attempts to determine how land insects (several abundant species of ants taken as an example) adapt to winter survival in northeastern Russia, the region with the lowest winter temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere. Data on the geographical, landscape and habitat distribution of species, the abundance of nests and families, location and organization of nests and population structure are given. Winter thermal regimes under conditions of extreme continental climate in differently positioned nests are described in detail. The influence of permafrost on the vital functions and wintering conditions of ants is examined. Characteristics of the cold-hardiness of larvae and adults (supercooling points and long-term tolerable temperature), seasonal changes in these parameters and concentrations of substances enabling cold-hardiness are given. The summarizing part of the book contains analysis of the relations between spatial distribution and cold-hardiness in ants in general, as well as of the adaptive strategies of these insects, which are intolerant of tissue freezing, that enable them to exist under extremely harsh climatic conditions. The book is addressed not only to entomologists working in biological and agricultural research institutes, but also to all ecologists interested in the strategies of animal adaptations to extreme conditions and cold in particular. The book will also be of use to students of biology and of local lore.