P. lucidus is incapable of feeding itself or rearing its young without assistance.
Like other members of its genus, it raids the nests of another species of ants and carries off the pupae to be reared in the dulotic nest where, when they emerge, they function as workers.
In the case of P. lucidus, the host species is Formica incerta, and reports of  Formica pallidefulva and Formica schaufussi in dulotic nests of P. lucidus, e.g., result from misidentifications, corrected in Trager's work.
Colonies of P. lucidus and its close relatives only raid nests of the slave species already present in the dulotic nest, an early clue that these host specialists might, in fact, be separate species.
On the odd occasion when the nest of a different ant species was raided, the pupae brought back to the dulotic nest were likely to be consumed.
In the past, it was suggested that worker dulotics obtain their preferences by imprinting, but it is now deemed more likely the host preference is an innate, evolved trait of each species.
P. lucidus is incapable of feeding itself or rearing its young without assistance. Like other members of its genus, it raids the nests of another species of ants and carries off the pupae to be reared in the dulotic nest where, when they emerge, they function as workers. In the case of P. lucidus, the host species is Formica incerta, and reports of  Formica pallidefulva and Formica schaufussi in dulotic nests of P. lucidus, e.g., result from misidentifications, corrected in Trager's work. Colonies of P. lucidus and its close relatives only raid nests of the slave species already present in the dulotic nest, an early clue that these host specialists might, in fact, be separate species. On the odd occasion when the nest of a different ant species was raided, the pupae brought back to the dulotic nest were likely to be consumed. In the past, it was suggested that worker dulotics obtain their preferences by imprinting, but it is now deemed more likely the host preference is an innate, evolved trait of each species.
Polyergus lucidus