Zeina Ayache Scientists have discovered that there is also the "surgeon" ant which has the surprising ability to understand if a fellow ant has an infection in the leg and, consequently, amputate it by gnawing it or cure it by licking it
The Florida carpenter ant, scientifically known as Camponotus floridanus, demonstrates an extraordinary ability to perform surgical amputations on injured comrades. These ants not only recognize infections in the limbs of their fellow ants but also take decisive action when necessary by amputating the affected legs and tending to the wounds. But how do they do it?
It may sound astonishing, but this is a reality for the brown-colored Florida carpenter ants, a common species known for their deliberate care of their colony members’ health. When required, they amputate limbs and meticulously treat the wounds.
Amputation and limb care
The process of amputation involves gnawing at the limb until it detaches, followed by cleaning the wound by licking it. This raises the question: why do they sometimes amputate and other times only clean the wound?
Scientists explain that if the injury is located on the femur, ants prefer to amputate. This is because the muscle damage in the femur slows down bacterial transmission, which is faster in the less muscular tibia. Amputating a limb takes about 40 minutes, which is too long to effectively prevent infections from a tibial injury, so in such cases, they focus on cleaning the wound instead.
Ants save each other’s lives
This remarkable ability to detect infections and determine whether to amputate or simply clean a wound significantly increases the survival rates within the ant colony. Researchers have observed that the survival rate of injured ants rises to 95% when treated, compared to a survival rate of 14% to 40% without treatment.
These ants effectively diagnose, perform surgery, and treat wounds. Scientists are now investigating whether these actions are carried out with conscious decision-making or if they are innate behaviors. Moreover, considering they perform these procedures without anesthesia, researchers are curious about the ants’ pain tolerance.
