The emergence of a collective sensory response threshold in ant colonies

SignificanceIn this study, we ask how ant colonies integrate information about the external environment with internal state parameters to produce adaptive, system-level responses. First, we show that colonies collectively evacuate the nest when the ground temperature becomes too warm. The threshold temperature for this response is a function of colony size, with larger colonies evacuating the nest at higher temperatures. The underlying dynamics can thus be interpreted as a decision-making process that takes both temperature (external environment) and colony size (internal state) into account. Using mathematical modeling, we show that these dynamics can emerge from a balance between local excitatory and global inhibitory forces acting between the ants. Our findings in ants parallel other complex biological systems like neural circuits.