ant fact archive

Struan Teague, Lapwing, 2021

Struan Teague

Lapwing
2021
oil, pigment, dispersion, glue, pencil, and acrylic on linen
190×130 cm
courtesy of the artist

Pheromones are a language of taste and smell, and the primary mode of communication for ants. These invisible signals carry distinct messages, from signaling danger to marking trails.100, 101

  • The complexities of this language are mostly unknown. A study covering just 75 ant species, less than one percent of all known species, identified 168 distinct pheromone compounds. (Cerdá et al. 2014)
  • Hölldobler & Wilson, 1990, 227