Myrmecology (; from Greek: μύρμηξ, ''myrmex'', "ant" and λόγος, ''logos'', "study") is a branch of

entomology Entomology (from Ancient Greek ἔντομον (''éntomon''), meaning "insect", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study") is the branch of zoology that focuses on insects. Those who study entomology are known as entomologists. In ...

focusing on the study of

ant Ants are Eusociality, eusocial insects of the Family (biology), family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the Taxonomy (biology), order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from Vespoidea, vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cre ...

s. Ants continue to be a model of choice for the study of questions on the evolution of

social system In sociology, a social system is the patterned network of relationships constituting a coherent whole that exist between individuals, groups, and institutions. It is the formal Social structure, structure of role and status that can form in a smal ...

s because of their complex and varied forms of

social organization In sociology, a social organization is a pattern of relationships between and among individuals and groups. Characteristics of social organization can include qualities such as sexual composition, spatiotemporal cohesion, leadership, struc ...

. Their diversity and prominence in ecosystems also has made them important components in the study of

biodiversity Biodiversity is the variability of life, life on Earth. It can be measured on various levels. There is for example genetic variability, species diversity, ecosystem diversity and Phylogenetics, phylogenetic diversity. Diversity is not distribut ...

and conservation. In the 2000s, ant colonies began to be studied and modeled for their relevance in

machine learning Machine learning (ML) is a field of study in artificial intelligence concerned with the development and study of Computational statistics, statistical algorithms that can learn from data and generalise to unseen data, and thus perform Task ( ...

, complex interactive networks, stochasticity of encounter and interaction networks,

parallel computing Parallel computing is a type of computing, computation in which many calculations or Process (computing), processes are carried out simultaneously. Large problems can often be divided into smaller ones, which can then be solved at the same time. ...

, and other computing fields.

History

The word myrmecology was coined by

William Morton Wheeler William Morton Wheeler (March 19, 1865 – April 19, 1937) was an American entomologist, myrmecologist and professor at Harvard University. Biography Early life and education William Morton Wheeler was born on March 19, 1865, to parents Juliu ...

(1865–1937), although human interest in the life of ants goes back to ancient times. The earliest scientific thinking based on observation of ant life was that of

Auguste Forel Auguste-Henri Forel (; 1 September 1848 – 27 July 1931) was a Swiss myrmecologist, neuroanatomist, psychiatrist and former eugenicist, notable for his investigations into the structure of the human brain and that of ants. He is considered a c ...

(1848–1931), a Swiss psychologist who initially was interested in ideas of instinct, learning, and society. In 1874 he wrote a book on the ants of Switzerland, ''Les fourmis de la Suisse'', and he named his home ''La Fourmilière'' (the ant colony). Forel's early studies included attempts to mix species of ants in a colony. He noted polydomy and monodomy in ants and compared them with the structure of nations.Sleigh, Charlotte (2007) Six Legs Better: A Cultural History of Myrmecology. The Johns Hopkins University Press. Wheeler looked at ants in a new light, in terms of their social organization, and in 1910 he delivered a lecture at Woods Hole, Massachusetts, on "The Ant-Colony as an Organism", which pioneered the idea of superorganisms. Wheeler considered

trophallaxis Trophallaxis () is the transfer of food or other fluids among members of a community through mouth-to-mouth (stomodeum, stomodeal) or anus-to-mouth (proctodeum, proctodeal) feeding. Along with nutrients, trophallaxis can involve the transfer of m ...

or the sharing of food within the colony as the core of ant society. This was studied using a dye in the food and observing how it spread in the colony. Some, such as Horace Donisthorpe, worked on the systematics of ants. This tradition continued in many parts of the world until advances in other aspects of

biology Biology is the scientific study of life and living organisms. It is a broad natural science that encompasses a wide range of fields and unifying principles that explain the structure, function, growth, History of life, origin, evolution, and ...

were made. The advent of

genetics Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinians, Augustinian ...

, and ideas in

ethology Ethology is a branch of zoology that studies the behavior, behaviour of non-human animals. It has its scientific roots in the work of Charles Darwin and of American and German ornithology, ornithologists of the late 19th and early 20th cen ...

and its evolution, led to new thought. This line of enquiry was pioneered by E. O. Wilson, who founded the field termed as

sociobiology Sociobiology is a field of biology that aims to explain social behavior in terms of evolution. It draws from disciplines including psychology, ethology, anthropology, evolution, zoology, archaeology, and population genetics. Within the study of ...

Interdisciplinary application

Ants often are studied by

engineers Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while consider ...

for

biomimicry Biomimetics or biomimicry is the emulation of the models, systems, and elements of nature for the purpose of solving complex human problems. The terms "biomimetics" and "biomimicry" are derived from (''bios''), life, and μίμησις ('' mīm ...

and by network engineers for more efficient networking. It is not known clearly how ants manage to avoid congestions and how they optimize their movements to move in most efficient ways without a central authority that would send out orders. There already have been many applications in structure design and networking that have been developed from studying ants, but the efficiency of human-created systems is still not close to the efficiency of ant colonies. Furthermore, there are efforts to use ant algorithms and the behavioral strategies of ants in modern management.

List of notable myrmecologists

''Alphabetically:'' *

Thomas Borgmeier Thomas Borgmeier (31 October 1892 – 11 May 1975) was a German-Brazilian priest and entomologist and became a specialist on the ants of Brazil and on the flies in the family Phoridae. He was also the founder of the journals ''Revista de Entomologi ...

(1892–1975), German-Brazilian theologian and entomologist * Murray S. Blum (1929–2015), American chemical ecologist, an expert on pheromones * Giovanni Cobelli (1849–1937), Italian entomologist, director of the Rovereto museum * Walter Cecil Crawley, British entomologist * William Steel Creighton (1902–1973), American entomologist * Horace Donisthorpe (1870–1951), British myrmecologist, named several new species *

Carlo Emery Carlo Emery (25 October 1848, Naples – 11 May 1925) was an Italian entomologist. He is remembered for Emery's rule, which states that insect social parasitism (biology), social parasites are often closely related to their hosts. Early in hi ...

(1848–1925), Italian entomologist *

Johan Christian Fabricius Johann Christian Fabricius (7 January 1745 – 3 March 1808) was a Danish zoologist, specialising in "Insecta", which at that time included all arthropods: insects, arachnids, crustaceans and others. He was a student of Carl Linnaeus, and is co ...

(1745–1808), Danish entomologist, student of Linnaeus *

Auguste-Henri Forel Auguste-Henri Forel (; 1 September 1848 – 27 July 1931) was a Swiss myrmecologist, neuroanatomist, psychiatrist and former eugenicist, notable for his investigations into the structure of the human brain and that of ants. He is considered a co ...

(1848–1931), Swiss myrmecologist, studied brain structure of humans and ants * Émil August Goeldi (1859–1917), Swiss-Brazilian naturalist and zoologist * William Gould (1715–1799), described by Horace Donisthorpe as "the father of British myrmecology" * Thomas Caverhill Jerdon (1811–1872), British physician, zoologist and botanist * Walter Wolfgang Kempf (1920–1976), Brazilian myrmecologist *

Pierre André Latreille Pierre André Latreille (; 29 November 1762 – 6 February 1833) was a French zoology, zoologist, specialising in arthropods. Having trained as a Roman Catholic priest before the French Revolution, Latreille was imprisoned, and only regained hi ...

(1762–1833) French entomologist * Sir John Lubbock (the 1st Lord and Baron Avebury) (1834–1913), wrote on hymenoptera sense organs *

Gustav Mayr Gustav L. Mayr (12 October 1830 – 14 July 1908) was an Austrian Entomology, entomologist and professor in Budapest and Vienna. He specialised in Hymenoptera, being particularly known for his studies of ants.William Nylander (1822–1899), Finnish botanist, biologist, mycologist, entomologist and myrmecologist * Basil Derek Wragge-Morley (1920–1969), research included genetics, social behaviour of animals, and the behaviour of agricultural pests * Fergus O'Rourke (1923– 2010), Irish zoologist *

Julius Roger Julius Roger (23 February 1819 – 7 January 1865) was a German Physician, medical doctor, Entomology, entomologist, and Folklore, folklorist who worked in Racibórz, Ratibor, in Upper Silesia, most notable for having arranged (and raised the nec ...

(1819–1865), German

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

entomologist Entomology (from Ancient Greek ἔντομον (''éntomon''), meaning "insect", and -logy from λόγος (''lógos''), meaning "study") is the branch of zoology that focuses on insects. Those who study entomology are known as entomologists. In ...

and

folklorist Folklore studies (also known as folkloristics, tradition studies or folk life studies in the UK) is the academic discipline devoted to the study of folklore. This term, along with its synonyms, gained currency in the 1950s to distinguish the ac ...

Felix Santschi Felix Santschi (1 December 1872 – 20 November 1940) was a Swiss entomologist known for discovering that ants use the sun as a compass and for describing about 2000 taxa of ants. Santschi is known for his pioneering work on the navigational abili ...

(1872–1940), Swiss entomologist * Theodore Christian Schneirla (1902–1968), American animal psychologist * Frederick Smith (1805–1879), worked in the zoology department of the British Museum from 1849, specialising in the Hymenoptera * Roy R. Snelling (1934–2008), American entomologist credited with many important finds of rare or new ant species * Erich Wasmann (1859–1931), Austrian entomologist *

John Obadiah Westwood John Obadiah Westwood (22 December 1805 – 2 January 1893) was an English people , English entomologist and archaeologist noted for his artistic talents. He published several illustrated works on insects and antiquities. He was among the first ...

(1805–1893), English entomologist and archaeologist also noted for his artistic talents *

(1865–1937), curator of invertebrate zoology in the American Museum of Natural History, described many new species * Edward Osborne Wilson (1929–2021),

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

winning American myrmecologist, revolutionized the field of sociobiology

Contemporary myrmecologists

* Barry Bolton, English ant taxonomist * John S. Clark, Scottish myrmecologist * Deborah Gordon (1955–), studies ant colony behavior and ecology * Bert Hölldobler (1936–),

winning German myrmecologist * Laurent Keller (1961–), Swiss evolutionary biologist and myrmecologist * Mark W. Moffett (1958–), American entomologist and photographer * Corrie S. Moreau, American evolutionary biologist and entomologist, wrote on evolution and diversification of ants * Justin Orvel Schmidt, American entomologist, studies the chemical and behavioral defenses of ants, wasps, and arachnids * Bernhard Seifert, German entomologist * Walter R. Tschinkel, American myrmecologist

References

External links