Mortality of the harvester ant (Pogonomyrmex owyheei) after exposure to 137Cs gamma radiation

Harvester ants, Pogonomyrmex owyheei Cole, irradiated with 3.5 kR to 268 kR of 137Cs gamma radiation, were maintained at simulated summer (270C) and winter (70C) temperature regimes. After thirty days, the cool series was warmed to 270C and observed for mortality along with the warm series. Though mortality was delayed in the cool series, each series reached 50% mortality at similar rates. Because the harvester ant is extremely tolerant to radiation and experimental rates used far exceed possible environmental exposure, it is unlikely that ant colonies dwelling among low-level nuclear waste storage sites will be deleteriously affected by radiation. This species has the capability of tunneling to a depth well within the range of some buried waste. Since these harvester ants are potential transporters of buried waste, they should be considered as a biotic factor in radioactive waste management operations in semi-arid regions