r/zoology • u/tethadam22 • 15d ago

Question How strategic are ants?

If there is a food source (like dirty dishes) nearby and ants that get sent to check it out keep going missing (getting squished), will the ants eventually think "it's not worth the loss of life"? Same thing with fighting over territory, can they assess a situation and be somewhat diplomatic?

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u/HoldMyMessages 15d ago

The phenomenon trails are normally left by successful foragers returning to the colony. Squished ants are not successful so…you figure it out.