Ants are known to be capable of homing to their nest after displacement to a novel location. This is widely assumed to involve some form of retinotopic matching between their current view and previously experienced views. One simple algorithm proposed to explain this behavior is continuous retinotopic alignment, in which the ant constantly adjusts its heading by rotating to minimize the pixel-w...

Young workers of the ant Myrmica sabuleti (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Meinert 1861 perceived nestmate alarm pheromone but did not display normal alarm behavior (orientation toward the source of emission, increased running speed). They changed their initial behavior when in the presence of older nestmates exhibiting normal alarm behavior. Four days later, the young ants exhibited an imperfect vers...

The role of experience in the development of communication in animals is a matter of special interest to many ethologists and psychologists. Ants are known to possess sophisticated and flexible communication systems based mainly on their antennal movements (Reznikova & Ryabko, 2011). However, it is still enigmatic whether young ants need stimulation performances by adults to develop their commu...

The ants are extraordinary in having evolved many lineages that exploit closely related ant societies as social parasites, but social parasitism by distantly related ants is rare. Here we document the interaction dynamics among a Sericomyrmex fungus-growing ant host, a permanently associated parasitic guest ant of the genus Megalomyrmex, and a raiding agro-predator of the genus Gnamptogenys. We...

Ants retrieve visual memories to guide them en route to their goal. A new study shows that wood ants use object width to retrieve the correct visual memory at the appropriate position along their route. A computational model that accurately reproduces the ants' behaviour raises questions about the underlying mechanisms.

The spider Myrmecicultor chihuahuensis Ramírez, Grismado & Ubick (Myrmecicultoridae) was described in 2019 and hypothesized to be a myrmecophile, living inside the nests of Novomessor (Myrmicinae) perhaps also Pogonomyrmex ants. To test hypothesis that M. are chemical mimics their host ants, we carried out behavioral bioassays observe interactions between spiders We compared cuticular hydrocarb...

Moffett (2012) misrepresents the position of Gordon, Heller, and others on supercolonies. We recognize the existence of Argentine ant supercolonies, populations of colonies all descended from common ancestors. A substantial body of work shows the common origins of certain Argentine ant populations of colonies, or supercolonies (e.g., Vogel et al. 2010). We consider that a colony, unlike a super...