Tergal and Sternal Glands in Ants

Chemical signals, or pheromones as they are generally called, play a central role in the complex communication system of ant societies. During the last 20 years a number of exocrine glands have been identified as the anatomical sources for a diversity of pheromones which mediate sexual and social behavior in ants (for reviews see Wilson 1971, Blum 1977, H611dobler 1978). In recent years, however, several hitherto unknown exocrine glandular structures have been discovered in ants and the behavioral functions of some of them have already been determined. In this paper we will review these findings and will report the new results of our comparative morphological study of tergal and sternal glands in ants.