Human study · Aging · 9 Nov 2026
In a 34-year record of 3,285 harvester ant colonies, mortality fell and reproduction rose as colonies got older
Source: PNAS
What the research found
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences published a field study on 9 November 2026. Blaine J. Cole and Diane C. Wiernasz followed 3,285 colonies of known age in the western harvester ant, Pogonomyrmex occidentalis, for 34 years. In most vertebrates and insects, mortality rises with age and reproduction falls. These colonies showed the reverse, which the authors call negative senescence. Older colonies were larger. Growth and reproduction were positively correlated, with no tradeoff in the record. At the population level, a year of greater reproduction did not yield more new colonies the next year. The authors read that pattern as an unpredictable environment that favors a longer reproductive lifespan. These are ant colonies, not people. DOI 10.1073/pnas.2612817123. Not medical advice.
Evidence level: Human study. A study in people, but an association isn't proof of cause.
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