Caterpillar treats and tricks ants by oozing spiked juice
Sipping droplets changes ants’ brain chemistry, making them neglect the colony and defend the butterfly larva
BUILDING BODYGUARDS Neglecting their colony tasks, ants hang around — and defend — a Narathura japonica caterpillar that oozes droplets spiked with substances that alter ant brain chemistry.
M.K. Hojo