Ant trails.Ants searching for food establish "road signs" so other ants can follow their trails. Scientists have discovered that ants have another signpost, too: Do not enter! Ants make these trail markers using pheromones pheromones, any of a variety of substances, secreted by many animal species, that alter the behavior of individuals of the same species. Sex attractant pheromones, secreted by a male or female to attract the opposite sex, are widespread among insects. . Many organisms communicate by secreting and detecting these chemical signals. "Ants use them for many functions, including to find mates," says Elva J.H. Robinson, a biologist at the University of Sheffield The University of Sheffield is a research university, located in Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. Reputation Sheffield was the Sunday Times University of the Year in 2001 and has consistently appeared as their top 20 institutions. in England. Food-hunting ants release pheromones to create chemical trails leading toward treats. But scientists didn't understand how other ants knew to avoid paths that don't lead to food. Robinson found that ants deposit a "do-not-enter" marker at the entry to fruitless fruit·less adj. 1. Producing no fruit. 2. Unproductive of success: a fruitless search. See Synonyms at futile. trails. That could be good for humans: The markers could be mimicked as a pest control pest control n → control m de plagas pest control n → lutte f contre les nuisibles pest control pest n , says Robinson. |
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