Why do ants kiss when passing each other?

If you’ve ever watched ants, you’ve probably noticed their tendency to “kiss,” quickly pressing their mouths together in face-to-face encounters. That’s how they feed each other and their larvae. It’s how nutrients are passed from foraging ants to nurse ants, and from nurses to the larvae in a colony.

How do two ants greet each other?

The ants have antennae in place of nose to smell. When they meet with other ants, they strike their antennae in them to communicate with each other. By this, they get signals related to availability of food or sometimes exchange food.

Why do ants go back and forth?

It’s all related to something biology calls the ‘trail pheromone’. A pheromone is a naturally occurring chemical secreted by a living organism. A trail pheromone is secreted specifically to help living creatures find their way. That’s exactly what ants are doing when they walk back and forth in a straight line.

Do ants talk to each other?

As well as communicating via pheromones, sound and touch, ants talk to each other by exchanging liquid mouth-to-mouth in a process called trophallaxis. Ants actually have two stomachs, with the second one set aside for storing food to be shared with other ants.

Why do ants touch each other?

A lack of good vision makes physical contact an integral part of their lives in order to communicate and eliminate threats to their colonies. That’s one theory as to why ants touch every other ant coming from the opposite direction. The other theory, however, is even more interesting.

What happens when ants collide?

Therefore, when two ants collide, or meet each other head-on, they smell each other thoroughly to make sure that they belong to the same colony. If not, things can get tense!

How do ants find their way back to their colony?

Touch – This method is pretty advanced for something as small as an ant. If an ant has found something useful for the colony, it will go back to the colony. When it walks back it will drop small amounts of pheromone to create a trail.

How do ants follow their leader?

The leader forms the trail and releases the chemical, and the rest of the ants follow the pheromones left by their leader. They stick together while searching for food and use their amazing olfactory sense to identify their leader and fellow ants. You will never find an ant following the out-group community or colony.