Active explorers show low learning performance in a social insect.

ABSTRACT: An intriguing question in behavioral biology is whether consistent individual differences (called animal personalities) relate to variation in cognitive performance because commonly measured personality traits may be associated with risk-reward trade-offs. Social insects, whose learning abilities have been extensively characterized, show consistent behavioral variability, both at colony and at individual level. We investigated the possible link between personality traits and learning performance in the carpenter ant Camponotus aethiops. Exploratory activity, sociability, and aggression were assessed twice in ant foragers. Behaviors differed among individuals, they were partly repeatable across time and exploratory activity correlated positively with aggression. Learning abilities we

SUBMITTER: Udino E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5804204 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature