{"id":2184,"date":"2021-11-12T09:31:39","date_gmt":"2021-11-12T01:31:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/?p=2184"},"modified":"2023-09-19T20:16:04","modified_gmt":"2023-09-19T12:16:04","slug":"can-ants-see","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Ants See?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Yes, ants can see. Most ants have a visual system that consists of a pair of compound eyes and a set of simple eyes called ocelli. This visual system allows them to detect motion, light, and color.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That said, there are also some ants that are completely blind. These ants include subterranean which have severely reduced eyes or have no eyes at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In this article, we\u2019ll learn more about the ant visual system and why some ants are blind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"536\" src=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/can-ants-see-b-1024x536.jpg\" alt=\"can ants see\" class=\"wp-image-3254\" srcset=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/can-ants-see-b-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/can-ants-see-b-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/can-ants-see-b-768x402.jpg 768w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/can-ants-see-b.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/close-up-photo-of-red-ant-3623383\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.pexels.com\/photo\/close-up-photo-of-red-ant-3623383\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Photo<\/a> by Egor Kamelev from Pexels<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_64 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-light-blue ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title \" >Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/#How_Can_Ants_See\" title=\"How Can Ants See?\">How Can Ants See?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/#Do_Ants_Have_Good_Eyesight\" title=\"Do Ants Have Good Eyesight?\">Do Ants Have Good Eyesight?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/#Can_Ants_See_Color\" title=\"Can Ants See Color?\">Can Ants See Color?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/#Can_Ants_See_In_The_Dark\" title=\"Can Ants See In The Dark?\">Can Ants See In The Dark?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/#Can_All_Ants_See\" title=\"Can All Ants See?\">Can All Ants See?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/#Why_are_Some_Ants_Blind\" title=\"Why are Some Ants Blind?\">Why are Some Ants Blind?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/#Related_Questions\" title=\"Related Questions\">Related Questions<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-8\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/#Can_Ants_See_Bacteria_or_Other_Microorganisms\" title=\"Can Ants See Bacteria or Other Microorganisms?\">Can Ants See Bacteria or Other Microorganisms?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-9\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/#Can_Ants_See_Humans\" title=\"Can Ants See Humans?\">Can Ants See Humans?<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-10\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/#How_Many_Eyes_Do_Ants_Have\" title=\"How Many Eyes Do Ants Have?\">How Many Eyes Do Ants Have?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-11\" href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/can-ants-see\/#Summary\" title=\"Summary\">Summary<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_Can_Ants_See\"><\/span>How Can Ants See?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Ants can see through their <strong>visual system<\/strong>. This system consists of compound eyes and ocelli which have different functions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Compound eyes, provide ants with a large field of view and allow them to <strong>form images of their environment<\/strong>. They detect motion, differentiate between light and dark, and differentiate color.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ocelli, on the other hand, are simple photo-receptors used to <strong>detect light<\/strong>. For example, ants use them to detect changes in skylight patterns or celestial cues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Do_Ants_Have_Good_Eyesight\"><\/span>Do Ants Have Good Eyesight?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"536\" src=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/can-ants-see-1024x536.jpg\" alt=\"can ants see\" class=\"wp-image-2187\" srcset=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/can-ants-see-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/can-ants-see-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/can-ants-see-768x402.jpg 768w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/can-ants-see.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Image by <a href=\"https:\/\/pixabay.com\/users\/virvoreanu-laurentiu-3417264\/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=2129070\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Virvoreanu Laurentiu<\/a> from <a href=\"https:\/\/pixabay.com\/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=2129070\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Pixabay<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Ants can see clearly enough to help with evading predators and navigation. However, their vision is blurry when compared to us humans and other mammals. This is due to the structure of their compound eyes. [<a href=\"https:\/\/azretina.sites.arizona.edu\/node\/789\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/azretina.sites.arizona.edu\/node\/789\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">2<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Human or mammalian eyes work as one functional unit. A singular lens focuses all light onto photoreceptors on the retina to produce a clear image.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Compound eyes, on the other hand, consist of <strong>multiple<\/strong><strong> independent photoreception units.<\/strong> These units are called ommatidia and each of them focuses on and sees only one point of an image. What an ant perceives is a pixelated combination of all these points.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The clarity of an image that an ant perceives depends on the number of ommatidia in its eyes. The higher the number, the clearer the image. Smaller ants tend to have fewer ommatidia and have worse vision than bigger ants. [<a href=\"https:\/\/journals.biologists.com\/jeb\/article\/221\/7\/jeb177238\/355\/Miniaturisation-decreases-visual-navigational\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/journals.biologists.com\/jeb\/article\/221\/7\/jeb177238\/355\/Miniaturisation-decreases-visual-navigational\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">3<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Can_Ants_See_Color\"><\/span>Can Ants See Color?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Yes, ants can see color. Research has found that Australian bull ants have <strong>3 types of color-sensitive photoreceptors<\/strong>. These photoreceptors can detect the colors blue, green, and UV. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.news.uwa.edu.au\/archive\/201505207622\/ants-colour-vision-may-help-march-towards-robot-technology\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/www.news.uwa.edu.au\/archive\/201505207622\/ants-colour-vision-may-help-march-towards-robot-technology\/\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">4<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In contrast, most mammals only have 2 types. We humans have 3, but we can\u2019t detect UV. This means that ants are capable of seeing things that other mammals and we can\u2019t.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Can_Ants_See_In_The_Dark\"><\/span>Can Ants See In The Dark?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"536\" src=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/are-ants-active-at-night-3-1024x536.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2005\" srcset=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/are-ants-active-at-night-3-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/are-ants-active-at-night-3-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/are-ants-active-at-night-3-768x402.jpg 768w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/are-ants-active-at-night-3.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Photo by <a href=\"https:\/\/unsplash.com\/@jimmywongc91?utm_source=unsplash&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_content=creditCopyText\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Jimmy Wong<\/a> on <a href=\"https:\/\/unsplash.com\/?utm_source=unsplash&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_content=creditCopyText\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Unsplash<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Yes, they can. In fact, some nocturnal ants can see quite well in the dark. The eyes of some nocturnal ants have <strong>larger facets and wider rhabdoms<\/strong>. These allow them to see <strong>27 times better in dim-light conditions<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Can_All_Ants_See\"><\/span>Can All Ants See?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Not all ants can see. <strong>Many subterranean ants are blind<\/strong> or have no eyes at all. These ants include many species like the strange <em>Martialis heureka<\/em>. They can also be found in army ants, a representative group of nomadic and predatory ants. These ants rely on pheromones to find their way around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Why_are_Some_Ants_Blind\"><\/span>Why are Some Ants Blind?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>While it may sound counter-intuitive, some ants are blind due to evolution. These ants don&#8217;t need eyes because they live in the dark and lightless underground.\u00a0As a result, their eyes have either been <strong>severely reduced or even removed to save energy<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Related_Questions\"><\/span>Related Questions<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"536\" src=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/do-ants-have-antennae-1024x536.jpg\" alt=\"do ants have antennae\" class=\"wp-image-2452\" srcset=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/do-ants-have-antennae-1024x536.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/do-ants-have-antennae-300x157.jpg 300w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/do-ants-have-antennae-768x402.jpg 768w, https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/do-ants-have-antennae.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Image by <a href=\"https:\/\/pixabay.com\/users\/roverhate-1759589\/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=1193472\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Ronny Overhate<\/a> from <a href=\"https:\/\/pixabay.com\/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=1193472\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener nofollow\">Pixabay<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Can_Ants_See_Bacteria_or_Other_Microorganisms\"><\/span>Can Ants See Bacteria or Other Microorganisms?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>No, ants can not see bacteria or other microorganisms. The ant visual system is similar to ours in that it\u2019s <strong>limited by the wavelength of light<\/strong>. At this wavelength, it&#8217;s impossible to see any microorganisms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Can_Ants_See_Humans\"><\/span>Can Ants See Humans?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Yes, <strong>ants can see humans.<\/strong> However, they probably can\u2019t distinguish us from other vertebrates. They are unlikely to have a mental concept of what humans are and instead view us simply as giant threats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"How_Many_Eyes_Do_Ants_Have\"><\/span>How Many Eyes Do Ants Have?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Most ants have <strong>2 compound eyes and a set of simple eyes<\/strong>. These sets may include 1 to 3 ocelli depending on the species.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>See this article to learn more about <a href=\"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/do-ants-have-eyes\/\" target=\"_blank\" data-type=\"post\" data-id=\"2550\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">ant eyes<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Summary\"><\/span>Summary<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>To summarize, ants can see. Most ants have a visual system of compound eyes and ocelli. This system allows them to form images of their environment and detect motion.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That said, their vision isn&#8217;t the best. Their eye structure consists of units called ommatidia. These units only capture only one point of the whole picture. The image an ant perceives is a pixelated combination of all these points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite that, ants do have visual advantages. For instance, they have a wide field of vision and are efficient in detecting movement. Some ant species also see well in the dark and are capable of seeing UV which we humans can&#8217;t.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Yes, ants can see. Most ants have a visual system that consists of a pair of compound eyes and a set of simple eyes called ocelli. This visual system allows them to detect motion, light, and color. That said, there are also some ants that are completely blind. These ants include subterranean which have severely&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":3254,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2184"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2184"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2184\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3751,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2184\/revisions\/3751"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3254"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scifaqs.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}