# Is "The Leafcutter Ants: Civilization by Instinct" by E. O. Wilson a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of The Leafcutter Ants: Civilization by Instinct by E. O. Wilson (W. W. Norton, 2011) is identified by: Norton first printing, 2011, co-authored with Bert Hölldobler. US true first (W.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- W. W. Norton first printing, 2011, co-authored with Bert Hölldobler
- Note that this Norton title (drawn from the authors' larger work The Superorganism) appeared primarily in paperback
- Publisher imprint reads W. W. Norton
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | E. O. Wilson |
| Publisher | W. W. Norton |
| Year | 2011 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | W. W. Norton first printing, 2011, co-authored with Bert Hölldobler |
| Book-club edition exists? | Yes |

## Points of issue
W. W. Norton first printing, 2011, co-authored with Bert Hölldobler. Note that this Norton title (drawn from the authors' larger work The Superorganism) appeared primarily in paperback.

## Is this the true first?
US true first (W. W. Norton, New York).

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club edition.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *The Leafcutter Ants: Civilization by Instinct* by E. O. Wilson a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/the-leafcutter-ants-civilization-by-instinct
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-03.