The adaptive value of tandem communication in ants:Insights from an agent-based model

AbstractSocial animals often share information about the location of resources, such as a food source or a new nest-site. One well-studied communication strategy in ants is tandem running, whereby a leader guides a recruit to a resource. Tandem running is considered an example of animal teaching because a leader adjusts her behaviour and invests time to help another ant to learn the location of a resource more efficiently. Tandem running also has costs, such as waiting inside the nest for a leader and a reduced walking speed. Whether and when these costs outweigh the benefits of tandem running is not well understood. We developed an agent-based simulation model to investigate the conditions…