Understanding the origins and maintenance of cognitive variation in animal populations is central to the study of the evolution of cognition. However, the brain is itself a complex, hierarchical network of heterogeneous components, from diverse cell types to diverse neuropils, each of which may be of limited use to study in isolation or prohibitively challenging to manipulate in situ. Consequently, highly tractable alternative model systems may be valuable tools. Eusocial-insect colonies display emergent cognitive-like properties from relatively simple social interactions between diverse subunits that can be observed and manipulated while operating collectively. Here, we review the individual-scale mechanisms that cause group-level variation in how colonies solve problems analogous to cognitive challenges faced by brains, like decision-making, attention, and search.

了解动物种群认知变异的起源和维持是认知进化研究的核心。然而，大脑本身就是一个复杂的、分层的网络，由异质成分组成，从不同的细胞类型到不同的神经细胞，每一种都可能在孤立研究中的用途有限，或者在原位操作时具有极大的挑战性. 因此，高度易处理的替代模型系统可能是有价值的工具。Eusocial-昆虫群落显示出来自不同亚基之间相对简单的社会互动的新兴认知特性，这些亚基可以在集体操作时被观察和操纵。在这里，我们回顾了导致群体如何解决类似于大脑面临的认知挑战的问题的个体尺度机制，如决策、注意力和搜索。