Cheating Ants Detected and Caught by Other Workers

Researchers at Arizona State University have found that worker ants attempting to mate while a queen is present signal themselves chemically, and are prevented from doing so by other worker ants.

Typically, the queen is the sole reproductive female in an ant colony, with the population filled with various male and female workers. Scientists found that when female ants (Aphaenogaster cockerelli) other than the queen are fertile, they emit a chemical hydrocarbon to attract a mate. This hydrocarbon is detected by nestmates, who will proceed to physically restrain the female from mating in favor of the queen. These hydrocarbon signals are also used to discriminate between eggs laid by the queen and those of other worker ants.

Experiments using a similar synthetic chemical compound applied to workers attracted aggression from others in colonies with a queen but it failed to have a similar effect in colonies without a queen, where female workers lay eggs until a new queen is obtained.

These results appear in the January 8th online edition of Current Biology.

Photo: ScienceDaily