How do ants know I’ve dropped a piece of candy in my room and gather their squad to eat it when there were no signs of ants previously? Do they smell that there’s sugar? Even so, how? The world seems so huge to them to know where to scout
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Ants scout, dropping faint pheromone (behavior-controlling odor) tracks so they can find their way home again. You probably just don’t notice the occasional scout in your room.
When a scout finds something good, it hightails it back to the hive while dropping a strong pheromone track, telling other ants “this way to the food!”
As long as there’s any food remaining, other ants will keep reinforcing the track. When there’s no food left, disappointed ants will return without reinforcing the track, until it vanishes.
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