Slave rebellion is widespread in ants , page 1


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Topic started on 27-9-2012 @ 02:02 AM by silent thunder

Above: A slavemaker pupa is killed by enslaved host workers of the species T. longispinosus.




No, this is not a thread about captive cell-phone factory workers going postal. It seems real ants actually engage in real rebellion:

Ants that are held as slaves in nests of other ant species damage their oppressors through acts of sabotage. Ant researcher Professor Dr. Susanne Foitzik of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) first observed this "slave rebellion" phenomenon in 2009. According to the latest findings, however, this behavior now appears to be a widespread characteristic that is not limited to isolated occurrences. In fact, in three different populations in the U.S. states of West Virginia, New York, and Ohio, enslaved Temnothorax longispinosus workers have been observed to neglect and kill the offspring of their Protomognathus americanus slavemakers rather than care for them. As a result, an average of only 45% of the parasite's offspring survived. This presumably reduces the strength of the parasites in the area and thereby increases the chances of survival for the neighboring colonies populated by the slave ants' relatives.

Source: Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz

The social behavior of ants, a species that seems to have a very tiny brain, remains astounding. Phenomena such as "slavery" itsef, never mind "slave revolts," would seem on the face of it to be something limited to humans. But ants and other insects prove time and time again that complex "social" behavior is more primal than it might appear at first glance.

This story tells us about fascinating things in and of themselves about ants, but one might also wonder if ant behavior could hold lessons about human society...



edit on 9/27/2012 by silent thunder because: (no reason given)



reply posted on 27-9-2012 @ 03:52 AM by reeferman
reply to post by silent thunder




so first we have fungal Zombie ants..

and now Johnny Rebel slave master ants?

/mind blown


reply posted on 27-9-2012 @ 09:04 AM by SheeplFlavoredAgain
This is so fascinating. As a child I loved to study ants and I dearly wish I had followed my heart and studied to become an entomologist instead of letting my parents push me kicking and screaming into majoring in business despite the fact I was paying for my education, not them. Ahh well, my fault for not being as strong willed and resourceful as a slave ant, the little buggers put me to shame.

They have such complex lives even as individuals, and I have seen individual specimens show remarkable problem solving abilities that far exceed what one would expect of something with such a tiny brain. They build cities, conduct complex warfare, enslave each other and other kinds of insects, and even farm livestock bugs (aphids) and vegetables (fungus).

And right now, they even have an Occupy movement going on in my kitchen cupboard.

Edit to add...I just thought of something that has struck me time and time again in my interactions with ants. I have noticed that they structure a lot of their activity around the chemicals they exude outside their bodies. Not only do they communicate with one another via chemical trails, but they seem to encode messages for themselves to follow. Also it seems other ants add their own information by adding their own chemicals to the trails. I wonder if unlike us, some of their brain processing is supplemented by these external chemical reactions. We have all of our brain function and chemical interactions taking place internally. But for an ant, I wonder if the chemicals laying out undergo changes over time, that give the ant additional information and decision making functions that it picks up when it returns to the chemicals later.
edit on 27-9-2012 by SheeplFlavoredAgain because: (no reason given)


reply posted on 27-9-2012 @ 12:07 PM by kisharninmah
reply to post by silent thunder


Wow, that is fascinating. How do the ants get enslaved? I wonder how the first observation occurred. Very interesting! Thanks for the link. I would love to read the actual academic paper. S+F


reply posted on 27-9-2012 @ 12:22 PM by Ophiuchus 13
reply to post by kisharninmah


op
Ants that are held as slaves in nests of other ant species damage their oppressors through acts of sabotage.


I think they are attacking the foreign leader ant for some reason and the slave rebellion was added to describe their activities. They are however smart not to mention some grey I remember reading are supposedly made of plant and ant material to survive in space and process energy from stars as do plants.
edit on 9/27/12 by Ophiuchus 13 because: (no reason given)



reply posted on 27-9-2012 @ 01:49 PM by bigfatfurrytexan
reply to post by silent thunder



Its called "Natural Law" for a reason.

Thanks for the reminder.
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