Long-term memory of individual identity in ant queens

Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review

Standard

Long-term memory of individual identity in ant queens. / Dreier, Stéphanie Agnès Jeanine; Van Zweden, Jelle Stijn; D'Ettorre, Patrizia.

In: Biology Letters, Vol. 3, No. 4, 22.10.2007, p. 459-462.

Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review

Harvard

Dreier, SAJ, Van Zweden, JS & D'Ettorre, P 2007, 'Long-term memory of individual identity in ant queens', Biology Letters, vol. 3, no. 4, pp. 459-462. https://doi.org/doi:10.1098/rsbl.2007.0224

APA

Dreier, S. A. J., Van Zweden, J. S., & D'Ettorre, P. (2007). Long-term memory of individual identity in ant queens. Biology Letters, 3(4), 459-462. https://doi.org/doi:10.1098/rsbl.2007.0224

Vancouver

Dreier SAJ, Van Zweden JS, D'Ettorre P. Long-term memory of individual identity in ant queens. Biology Letters. 2007 Oct 22;3(4):459-462. https://doi.org/doi:10.1098/rsbl.2007.0224

Author

Dreier, Stéphanie Agnès Jeanine ; Van Zweden, Jelle Stijn ; D'Ettorre, Patrizia. / Long-term memory of individual identity in ant queens. In: Biology Letters. 2007 ; Vol. 3, No. 4. pp. 459-462.

Bibtex

@article{8788dc009b4e11dcbee902004c4f4f50,
title = "Long-term memory of individual identity in ant queens",
abstract = "Remembering individual identities is part of our own everyday social life. Surprisingly, this ability has recently been shown in two social insects. While paper wasps recognize each other individually through their facial markings, the ant, Pachycondyla villosa, uses chemical cues. In both species, individual recognition is adaptive since it facilitates the maintenance of stable dominance hierarchies among individuals, and thus reduces the cost of conflict within these small societies. Here, we investigated individual recognition in Pachycondyla ants by quantifying the level of aggression between pairs of familiar or unfamiliar queens over time. We show that unrelated founding queens of P. villosa and Pachycondyla inversa store information on the individual identity of other queens and can retrieve it from memory after 24h of separation. Thus, we have documented for the first time that long-term memory of individual identity is present and functional in ants. This novel finding represents an advance in our understanding of the mechanism determining the evolution of cooperation among unrelated individuals.",
keywords = "Faculty of Science",
author = "Dreier, {St{\'e}phanie Agn{\`e}s Jeanine} and {Van Zweden}, {Jelle Stijn} and Patrizia D'Ettorre",
note = "Paper id:: 10.1098/rsbl.2007.0224",
year = "2007",
month = oct,
day = "22",
doi = "doi:10.1098/rsbl.2007.0224",
language = "English",
volume = "3",
pages = "459--462",
journal = "Biology Letters",
issn = "1744-9561",
publisher = "The/Royal Society",
number = "4",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - Long-term memory of individual identity in ant queens

AU - Dreier, Stéphanie Agnès Jeanine

AU - Van Zweden, Jelle Stijn

AU - D'Ettorre, Patrizia

N1 - Paper id:: 10.1098/rsbl.2007.0224

PY - 2007/10/22

Y1 - 2007/10/22

N2 - Remembering individual identities is part of our own everyday social life. Surprisingly, this ability has recently been shown in two social insects. While paper wasps recognize each other individually through their facial markings, the ant, Pachycondyla villosa, uses chemical cues. In both species, individual recognition is adaptive since it facilitates the maintenance of stable dominance hierarchies among individuals, and thus reduces the cost of conflict within these small societies. Here, we investigated individual recognition in Pachycondyla ants by quantifying the level of aggression between pairs of familiar or unfamiliar queens over time. We show that unrelated founding queens of P. villosa and Pachycondyla inversa store information on the individual identity of other queens and can retrieve it from memory after 24h of separation. Thus, we have documented for the first time that long-term memory of individual identity is present and functional in ants. This novel finding represents an advance in our understanding of the mechanism determining the evolution of cooperation among unrelated individuals.

AB - Remembering individual identities is part of our own everyday social life. Surprisingly, this ability has recently been shown in two social insects. While paper wasps recognize each other individually through their facial markings, the ant, Pachycondyla villosa, uses chemical cues. In both species, individual recognition is adaptive since it facilitates the maintenance of stable dominance hierarchies among individuals, and thus reduces the cost of conflict within these small societies. Here, we investigated individual recognition in Pachycondyla ants by quantifying the level of aggression between pairs of familiar or unfamiliar queens over time. We show that unrelated founding queens of P. villosa and Pachycondyla inversa store information on the individual identity of other queens and can retrieve it from memory after 24h of separation. Thus, we have documented for the first time that long-term memory of individual identity is present and functional in ants. This novel finding represents an advance in our understanding of the mechanism determining the evolution of cooperation among unrelated individuals.

KW - Faculty of Science

U2 - doi:10.1098/rsbl.2007.0224

DO - doi:10.1098/rsbl.2007.0224

M3 - Journal article

VL - 3

SP - 459

EP - 462

JO - Biology Letters

JF - Biology Letters

SN - 1744-9561

IS - 4

ER -

ID: 1563183