Ants Can Expect the Time of an Event on Basis of Previous Experiences

Figure 1

Some views of the experimental work. ((a)–(d)) Myrmica ruginodis; ((e) and (f)) M. sabuleti. (a) Experimental design, with a pencil drawn faint circle delimiting the food site where meat and sugar water were delivered each day at a different time. (b) Getting over the circle, an ant waiting for food a few minutes before the subsequent delivery time. (c) Ants drinking sugar water as much as they could, since they progressively learned that this food will be soon retrieved. (d) An ant gripping the entomological forceps when the observer had to remove the meat food, the ant tempting to go on eating. (e) An ant waiting for the expected food delivery from its nest entrance. (f) Ants eating meat without stopping, during the short food delivery period.

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