A new study shows that ants remember aggressive rivals by smell and respond to them with hostility.
Ants remember unpleasant encounters and react aggressively to familiar opponents.
The study, published in the journal Current Biology, found that these social insects learn from experience, adapting their behavior to different situations.
Scientists conducted an experiment in which ants were asked to interact with three types of colonies: neighbors, aggressive ants and passive insects. For five days, the subjects recognized their “rivals” and remembered their smells.
The results showed that the ants showed more aggression towards familiar competitors with whom they had had conflicts in the past. However, they reacted more calmly when they encountered passive opponents again.
Interestingly, the researchers noted that aggression is not always seen in all situations. Scientists suggest that the behavior of ants largely depends on the nature of the initial interaction.
The study highlights the ability of ants to adapt to their environment and learn from experience, revealing their complex social behavior.
It was previously reported that a new species of ant was discovered in Australia.
Source: korrespondent
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