Reversal learning in ant colonies

Abstract

AbstractReversal learning has been studied in many species, often as an indicator of their behavioral flexibility. Although this research typically focuses on individuals, groups of social animals, especially social insects, are often considered to have similar learning capabilities. Associative learning has been rarely studied in ant colonies and their behavioral flexibility is still to be assessed. In this study, we investigated behavioral flexibility of ant colonies (Temnothorax rugatulus) in a reversal learning task using a two-corridor maze with distinctive visual and tactile cues indicating the location of food. Ant colonies readily learned to discriminate between these cues and subsequently learned their reversal. Reversal performance was maintained after a 5-day retention interval, but not after a 10-day interval. These results show that the two-corridor maze used in this study can serve to assess colony-level learning in ants.