View-based navigation in insects: how wood ants (Formica rufa L.) look at and are guided by extended landmarks.

摘要: Bees, wasps and ants learn landmarks as views from particular vantage points, storing the retinal positions of landmark edges. By moving so to minimise difference between their stored current view, they can return point which a view was taken. We have examined what wood about laterally placed, extended landmark, wall, while walking parallel it reach feeder how use this information guide path. Manipulation height wall ant's starting distance reveals that maintain desired by keeping image top at elevation. Ants thus employ matching both for returning place following fixed route. Unlike many flying insects, an direction motion is always along its longitudinal body axis and, perhaps reason, favours frontal retina viewing discrete landmarks. find also placed wall. On coarse scale, path straight, but on finer scale roughly sinusoidal, allowing ant scan surrounding landscape with retina. The side-to-side scanning means viewed phases cycle throughout trajectory. Details pattern depend scene. further side empty than containing into when lower apparent height. conclude employed storage control.