Ant Colony Life Cycle:
Growing Phase I
The colony passes through a growing phase, not only in population but also in nest size and the area over which the workers forage for food.
in the case of slave-making ants, the workers visit nests of other species where they "steal" pupae that finish their development within the slavers nests, from which they acquire their odor. Upon emergence these workers recognize their hosts as their sisters and collaborate in the development of the slave's colony.
More details may be found in these references.
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