In the ponerine ant Diacamma sp., a queenless species from the island
of Okinawa (Japan), there is a relatively marked division of labor bet
ween individuals which seems related to age. This polyethism is organi
zed around five poles of specialization: brood care, inter-individual
pullings, inactivity, guarding, and food provisioning. This social org
anization is accompanied by a differentiated spatial localization of w
orkers in the nest. Pulling, a type of agonistic behavior common in th
is species, seems to mediate the establishment of a social hierarchy,
frequent in queenless ponerine species.