The Role of Associative Learning in Ant Learning and Memory

Learning, the enduring change of behavior of an animal with experience, has been one of the most scrutinised cognitive ability of animals ranging from simple forms to the most advanced ones. Learning is considered in two categories as non-associative and associative. Simple forms of responses including habituation and sensitization are considered as non-associative while associative learning can be either via classical conditioning or instrumental conditioning. Studies on insects, particularly those on honey bees, dipterans and ants as model organisms presented a good deal of evidence for learning and memory to differing extents. Ants are known to rely on various sensory modalities ranging from olfactory to visual, tactile and magnetoreceptive in order to accomplish vital tasks not only in but also outside their nests. Studies with ants revealed empirical evidence for reliance of learning and memory in different tasks in nature and artificial laboratory conditions. In the present study, we tried to bring together the data on the role of associative learning in behavioral responses of ants in different contexts. The neural control of associative learning and the ecology of ant learning as an adaptive tool were discussed.