Some Worker Ants Guilty of Nepotism
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From Times Staff and Wire Reports
Some ants are guilty of nepotism, Finnish researchers reported in Thursday’s issue of Nature. The scientists have discovered an ant species that ruthlessly favors its own relations in colonies descended from multiple queen ants.
Worker ants in the species favored their own relatives when caring for eggs and larvae, which researchers said implied they capitalized on their ability to discriminate.
The study looked at nepotism in colonies of Formica fusca ants.
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