Journal
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
Volume 273, Issue 1583, Pages 165-169Publisher
ROYAL SOC
DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2005.3312
Keywords
ants; counting; decision-making; house hunting; Weber's Law; social insects
Categories
Funding
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council [E19832] Funding Source: Medline
- Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council [E19832] Funding Source: researchfish
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There are claims in the literature that certain insects can count. We question the generality of these claims and suggest that summation rather than counting (sensu stricto) is a more likely explanation. We show that Temnothorax albipennis ant colonies can discriminate between potential nest sites with different numbers of entrances. However, our experiments suggest that the ants use ambient light levels within the nest cavity to assess the abundance of nest entrances rather than counting per se. Intriguingly, Weber's Law cannot explain the ants' inaccuracy. The ants also use a second metric, independent of light, to assess and discriminate against wide entrances. Thus, these ants use at least two metrics to evaluate one nest trait: the configuration of the portals to their potential homes.
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