Ant Queens Cannibalize Sick Offspring to Protect Colonies
Researchers at the University of Oxford have discovered a fascinating strategy employed by black garden ants to combat disease. The queens of these ants, Lasius niger, engage in filial cannibalism to protect their colonies from pathogens like Metarhizium.
The study, published in the journal Science, reveals that when larvae are infected, the queen ant can discern whether the disease is contagious or not. If the pathogen is in its early stages, the queen cannibalizes the larvae, consuming them to recycle their nutrients and produce new eggs. This action helps control disease outbreaks within the colony.
In experiments, when larvae artificially infected with Metarhizium were introduced into the queen's nest, she cannibalized 92% of the sick offspring compared to only 6% of the healthy ones. However, when infected larvae were introduced at a more advanced stage of the disease, 80% of the queens that consumed them died shortly afterwards. This indicates that the queen's strategy is most effective when the disease is still latent and not yet contagious.
The queen ant's ability to detect and respond to disease in her offspring is a remarkable example of how wild species adapt to survive in complex environments. By recycling nutrients from infected larvae and producing new, healthy offspring, the queen ant helps maintain the health and resilience of her colony in the face of pathogens and predators.
