ERC Consolidator Grant · 2025
Smart Nests: Adaptive Architecture in Ant Societies
Social species construct intricate buildings as a buffer against the environment. In turn, spatial architecture exerts a profound influence on an array of important processes, moulding the movement of individuals, the flow of resources, the exchange of information, and the spread of pathogens. Although there is growing interest in understanding how architecture can be used as a tool to optimise transmission trade-offs and overcome environmental perturbations, practical and ethical restrictions have limited empirical progress. We propose that social insect architecture, refined through millions of years of evolution, provides a valuable testbed for exploring these questions experimentally.…
From the public funding record at EU CORDIS. Describes the funded project, not the reviews below.