Dynamic multimodal interactions in navigating wood ants: what do path details tell us about cue integration?

The Journal of Experimental Biology
Cornelia BuehlmannPaul Graham

Abstract

Ants are expert navigators, using multimodal information to navigate successfully. Here, we present the results of systematic studies of multimodal cue use in navigating wood ants, Formica rufa Ants learnt to navigate to a feeder that was defined by an olfactory cue (O), visual cue (V) and airflow (A) presented together. When the feeder, olfactory cue and airflow were all placed at the centre of the visual cue (VOACentre), ants did not directly approach the learnt feeder when either the olfactory or visual cue was removed. This confirms that some form of cue binding has taken place. However, in a visually simpler task with the feeder located at the edge of the visual cue (VOAEdge), ants still approached the feeder directly when individual cue components were removed. Hence, cue binding is flexible and depends on the navigational context. In general, cues act additively in determining the ants' path accuracy, i.e. the use of multiple cues increased navigation performance. Moreover, across different training conditions, we saw different motor patterns in response to different sensory cues. For instance, ants had more sinuous paths with more turns when they followed an odour plume but did not have any visual cues. Having visual in...Continue Reading

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Citations

Apr 24, 2020·Animal Cognition·Cornelia BuehlmannPaul Graham
Jan 14, 2021·The Journal of Experimental Biology·Kaylyn A S FlaniganVerner P Bingman
Mar 8, 2021·Journal of Comparative Physiology. A, Neuroethology, Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology·Cody A Freas, Marcia L Spetch

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