Same length, different shapes : Ants collectively choose a straight foraging path over a bent one
Bles, Olivier ; Boehly, Thibault LU
; Deneubourg, Jean Louis
and Nicolis, Stamatios C.
(2018)
In Biology letters
14(3).
- Abstract
In socials insects, exploration is fundamental for the discovery of food resources and determines decision-making. We investigated how the interplay between the physical characteristics of the paths leading to food sources and the way it impacts the behaviour of individual ants affects their collective decisions. Colonies of different sizes of Lasius Niger had access to two equal food sources through two paths of equal length but of different geometries: one was straight between the nest and the food source, and the other involved an abrupt change of direction at the midway point (1358). Both food sources were discovered simultaneously, but the food source at the end of the straight path was preferentially exploited by ants. Based on... (More)
In socials insects, exploration is fundamental for the discovery of food resources and determines decision-making. We investigated how the interplay between the physical characteristics of the paths leading to food sources and the way it impacts the behaviour of individual ants affects their collective decisions. Colonies of different sizes of Lasius Niger had access to two equal food sources through two paths of equal length but of different geometries: one was straight between the nest and the food source, and the other involved an abrupt change of direction at the midway point (1358). Both food sources were discovered simultaneously, but the food source at the end of the straight path was preferentially exploited by ants. Based on experimental and theoretical results, we show that a significantly shorter duration of nestbound travel on the straight path, which rapidly leads to a stronger pheromone trail, is at the origin of this preference.
(Less)
- author
- Bles, Olivier
; Boehly, Thibault
LU
; Deneubourg, Jean Louis
and Nicolis, Stamatios C.
- publishing date
- 2018-03-01
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Ant, Collective decision-making, Exploration, Orientation, Recruitment
- in
- Biology letters
- volume
- 14
- issue
- 3
- article number
- 20180070
- publisher
- Royal Society Publishing
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85044024660
- pmid:29540566
- ISSN
- 1744-9561
- DOI
- 10.1098/rsbl.2018.0070
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- no
- additional info
- Publisher Copyright: © 2018 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.
- id
- 3ffbebfd-2b25-4688-9b2f-934c43929e41
- date added to LUP
- 2021-11-01 10:54:40
- date last changed
- 2024-06-29 21:26:00
@article{3ffbebfd-2b25-4688-9b2f-934c43929e41,
abstract = {{<p>In socials insects, exploration is fundamental for the discovery of food resources and determines decision-making. We investigated how the interplay between the physical characteristics of the paths leading to food sources and the way it impacts the behaviour of individual ants affects their collective decisions. Colonies of different sizes of Lasius Niger had access to two equal food sources through two paths of equal length but of different geometries: one was straight between the nest and the food source, and the other involved an abrupt change of direction at the midway point (1358). Both food sources were discovered simultaneously, but the food source at the end of the straight path was preferentially exploited by ants. Based on experimental and theoretical results, we show that a significantly shorter duration of nestbound travel on the straight path, which rapidly leads to a stronger pheromone trail, is at the origin of this preference.</p>}},
author = {{Bles, Olivier and Boehly, Thibault and Deneubourg, Jean Louis and Nicolis, Stamatios C.}},
issn = {{1744-9561}},
keywords = {{Ant; Collective decision-making; Exploration; Orientation; Recruitment}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{03}},
number = {{3}},
publisher = {{Royal Society Publishing}},
series = {{Biology letters}},
title = {{Same length, different shapes : Ants collectively choose a straight foraging path over a bent one}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2018.0070}},
doi = {{10.1098/rsbl.2018.0070}},
volume = {{14}},
year = {{2018}},
}