How Ants’ Individual Encounters Influence Colony-Wide Behavior, and Vice Versa
A new review of ant research illuminates how ant behavior is driven by a cascade of individual decisions among colony members. Insights on ant movement and encounter rates also suggest parallels to collective behavior in another population under the microscope in 2020: humans.
Digging Deep: The Secrets Within Termite Nests
A researcher studying termites' digging techniques says that understanding individual roles in collective activities can shine a light on the evolution of such behavior and how social insects perform simple tasks to ultimately construct complex structures.
Is That a Gall Wasp? Now You Can Find Out
A new key to Cynipoidea, a superfamily of at least 3,000 species of wasps, published in the journal Insect Systematics and Diversity, promises to open up new avenues for research on and management of gall wasps and their relatives.
Big, Beautiful, and Confusing: Deciphering the True Hornets
A new key to the genus Vespa includes dozens of close-up photos to help users sort through and ID potential invasive species like the Asian giant hornet.