Ants living in smoggy air may be turning on their own, and even abandoning their young, because pollution is scrambling their social signals, new research suggests. In lab tests described this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, scientists exposed individual workers from six ant species to ozone at levels commonly recorded in heavily polluted cities (100 parts per billion) for 20 minutes, then returned them to their colonies. In most species, nest mates reacted aggressively to the exposed ants, sometimes attacking them as if they were intruders, reports Smithsonian Magazine.
Researchers say ozone appears to alter key odor compounds—especially alkenes—that ants use to recognize colony members. One exception was the clonal raider ant, a species without queens and known for low aggression even toward outsiders, per a news release from the Max Planck Institute in Germany. Instead, something different happened: When researchers exposed small clonal raider colonies, including larvae, to ozone for 12 days, workers kept their distance from their brood. Many larvae died, likely from neglect rather than direct poisoning, suggesting that ozone may interfere with the chemical cues that normally trigger parental care.
"I did not expect it, I have to say," says study co-author Markus Knaden of the German institute, per New Scientist. "Because knowing that alkenes are such a minor part [of the ants' scent], we knew that whatever we did with ozone would only change maybe 2% or 5% of the blend." The work adds another possible factor to the documented global decline in insect populations, often linked to habitat loss, pesticides, and light pollution. Ants are considered ecosystem "engineers," helping to spread seeds, aerate soil, and control other insects.
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