Cheeky caterpillars trick ants into treating them as queens

Baby caterpillars have figured out how to get themselves the royal treatment in certain ant colonies – getting carried around like precious cargo, fed on demand, guarded and being rescued from danger. But why would ants give this celebrity status to a caterpillar? The secret lies in perfect mimicry: the caterpillar copies not just the queen ant’s chemical scent, but the exact rhythm of her vibrations.

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Category: Biology, Science

Tags: Insect, Ants, Butterfly, Caterpillar