Scientists from the University of Regensburg, Germwany, reared ants in a laboratory and exposed them to spores of a fungus that would kill them.

Writing in the journal Current Biology, Jurgen Heinze and Bartosz Walter say they observed that most infected worker ants deserted the nest within hours or even days before they died.

Many voluntarily ventured to a distant foraging area, where they died alone, far from their comrades.

The same behavior was seen when another group of ants was exposed to an atmosphere of 95 percent carbon dioxide, which considerably reduces the insects’ lifespan.

Those ants also left the nest to die, as did other ants that were observed dying from unknown causes.

Similar behavior has been seen in other social insects, such as bees.

The researchers conclude that social withdrawal might be a commonly overlooked altruistic trait that serves to protect surviving social animals.

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