Research has shown that young sick ants emit a scent to signal their illness. The scent prompts adult worker ants to free the pupa from its cocoon, bite it, and inject venom to eliminate the pathogen and the pupa itself, thereby preventing an outbreak of infection in the nest.
It is important to note that worker ants have the ability to leave the nest in case of illness, while pupae cannot do so. Scientists have also confirmed that the scent is released only in the presence of "worker siblings," indicating the targeted nature of this signal.
Experiments with black garden ants Lasius neglectus demonstrated that even healthy pupae treated with the scent of sick ones were also subjected to destruction. However, queen pupae do not emit this signal, as they possess a stronger immune system and can manage infections on their own.
According to researchers, this behavior of pupae can be interpreted as altruism: by sacrificing themselves, they help preserve the genes and contribute to the survival of the colony.
The results of this study were published in the journal Nature Communications.
