Amazing Ants
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Ants are Small But Mighty
Ants are simply amazing! Did you know that ants make up almost half of the biomass of all insects combined?
In his book, The Diversity of Life, Edward O. Wilson wonders if the prevalence of ants has something to do with their advanced colonial organization. He says,
"A colony is a superorganism, an assembly of workers so tightly knit around the mother queen as to act like a single, well-coordinated entity."
By working together they are able to compete with larger, individual organisms. I know that when I find them in my kitchen, they mostly win the battle!
Contents at a Glance
Edward O. Wilson, Biologist
writes about ants and the diversity of life
One of the preeminent biologists of our time, Edward O. Wilson is passionate about discovering new species. If you love biology, you will find his books fascinating. Wilson's passion for the subject really comes through in his writing. And some of the facts he reveals are simply amazing. For example,
"About 875,000 'bug' species have been described, more than half the total for all organisms. Insects make up about 750,000 of these, so they are the unchallenged dynasty of 'bugs', having been around for more than 300 million years."
Over half of the insects are ants!
Ants as Part of the Ecosystem
Ant Test #1
See results at the end of this page.
The Intelligence of Ants
In his book The Intelligence of Nature", Jeremy Narby shares this about the intelligence of ants.
"With brains the size of a grain of sugar, leaf-cutter ants practice underground agriculture and have used antibiotics wisely for more than 50 million years. They live in South and Central American rain forests and feed themselves with the help of mushrooms. First, they cut vegetation and then scrape away the plants' antifungal defenses, such as the waxy coating on leaves. They chew the leafy matter to a pulp and then use this as a substrate on which to grow their fungal crops. The fungus digests the insecticide substances in the leaves, but these substances are not found in the mushroom tissue that the ants eat.
A leaf-cutter nest is underground with thousands of chambers filled with gray fungus. These nests are as big as a living room and can house up to 8 million ants. The fungus is their main food and they make a monoculture of it. Thus, their farms are at the mercy of parasites and pests. The ants weed, manure, and prune their fungal crops. They keep their farm free from a particular parasitic mold by using Streptomyces bacteria, which they carry on their bodies. This bacterium is the source of half of the antibiotics used in medicine. Ants have been using antibiotics on their crops for millions of years without developing pathogen resistance."
Ant Test #2
See results at the end of this page.
What Darwin Said About Ants
In His Book "The Descent of Man" (1871)
Photo Courtesy: Photos8.comThis is fascinating!
"Ants certainly communicate information to each other, and several unite for the same work, or for games of play. They recognize their fellow-ants after months of absence, and feel sympathy for each other. They build great edifices, keep them clean, close the doors in the evening, and post sentries. They make roads as well as tunnels under rivers, and temporary bridges over them, by clinging together. They collect food for the community, and when an object, too large for entrance, is brought to the nest, they enlarge the door, and afterwords build it up again. They store up seeds, of which they prevent the germination, and which, if damp are brought up to the surface to dry. They keep aphides and other insects as milk cows. They go out to battle in regular bands and freely sacrifice their lives for the commonweal. They emigrate according to a pre-concerted plan. They capture slaves. They move the eggs of their aphides, as well as their own eggs and cocoons, into warm parts of the nest, in order that they may be quickly hatched; and endless similar facts could be given."
As quoted from Jeremy Narby's 'Intelligence in Nature', page 49.
Intelligence in Nature
by Jeremy Narby
Intelligence in Nature
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What do you think?
According to Merriam-Webster, intelligence is defined as:
(1) : the ability to learn or understand or to deal with new or trying situations : reason; also : the skilled use of reason
(2) : the ability to apply knowledge to manipulate one's environment or to think abstractly as measured by objective criteria (as tests)
Do ants have intelligence?
Yes, ants have an intelligence similar to humans.
macy says:
Yes, even though there small does not mean there not no good or nice.
sharpturn says:
Ants are just like really small people living their day to day lives.
Vladi says:
But humans are pretty instinctual, you know
clowny says:
they are awesome because the clean up dead things
LeanneChesser says:
Yes, absolutely. I don't think that the complexity we see among ants (and other creatures) is only instinct.
No, ants do their thing by instinct alone.
RealMonstrosity says:
Nope. They amazing group dynamics that are based on extremely simple rules. This can sometimes backfire and leave them literally running around in circles. There is certainly no evidence to suggest they are capable of reasoning.
wildlens says:
I would say that a single ant doesn't have any, but ants as a group, similarly to bees, demonstrate some sort of collective "intelligence", or at least a behavior, which might seem intelligent, purpose-driven, although it's based on instinct. This makes those little creatures even more fascinating in my opinion.
ulla_hennig says:
I think the word "intelligence" is a wrong description. Nevertheless I think they communicate in a fascinating way with each other.
LaraineRose says:
I hate to disagree with everyone else here but, I think they are instinctively wise. I don't really know though, not knowing one personally.
Antz, the Movie (1998)
In the animated movie "Antz", Z is a worker-ant who thinks there might be more to life beyond the ant colony. After falling in love with ant-Princess Bala, who struggles with her own questions, Z finds that he needs to save the ant colony from the evil General Mandible.
This movie covers age-old themes such as the power of one, love, and individual versus social responsibilities. Woody Allen as a cartoon character? Now, that's funny!
With voices by Woody Allen as Z and Sharon Stone as Princess Bala. Other voices include Dan Akroyd, Anne Bancroft, Jane Curtain, Danny Glover, Gene Hackman, Jennifer Lopez, and Christopher Walken.
Ant Test #3
See results at the end of this page.
Antz: The Trailer
Buy the Movie
at Amazon
Antz
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Ants on a Log
A Classic Recipe - Good and Healthy
Ants on a Log Recipe
Pieces of celery
Peanut Butter
Raisins
Fill hollow of celery stick with peanut butter. Dot with raisins.
YUMMM!
Ant Resources for Kids
- All About Ants
- Lots of good information, supplies, books, and videos about ants.
- I'm An Ant Song
- This song is available on Jennifer Fixman's Science Songs with Miss Jenny CD/Booklet Set.
- Professor Ant
- Science News for Kids
- Fast Facts and Links about Ants
- Kids Konnect
- All About Ants
- Infowest Life Studies
- Two Bad Ants by Chris Van Allsburg
- Downloadable teachers guide
- Going Buggy! Ants
- More books and resource links about ants.
- Photos of Ants
- Amazing close-up photos of ants from PhotoZZ
- Insane Posed Ant Photography
- From Geekologie. These pictures are amazing!
JumpStart Leafcutter Ants Song
Ant Test #4
See results at the end of this page.
Books & DVDs about Ants
from Amazon
Native American Totems
Not surprisingly, in Native American lore, the ant totem teaches patience.
Learn more at the Native American Totems blog.
Learn More About Ants
with these products from Amazon
Answers to Ant Tests
Ant Test #1
What is the purpose of the ant queen? She mates and lays eggs the rest of her life.
Ant Test #2
How do ants communicate? By touching each other with their antennae.
Ant Test #3
In the movie "Antz", what was Z's full name? Z-4195
Ant Test #4
How do ants breathe? Through tiny holes all over their body.
All 4 correct? You get to be the ant queen for a day.
3 correct? You get to take an ant break.
2 correct? You must be a worker ant.
1 correct? You have ants in your pants.
None correct? You need to favorite this page.
Do You Agree that Ants are Amazing?
Tell us your ant story.
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KathyMcGraw
Mar 17, 2012 @ 6:22 pm | delete
- Well, I think I have had my daily lesson of Ants today :) Enjoyed this, and learned a few things. My grandkids loved the Ants movie, and me...I try to rid my house of ants no matter how nice they may seem to some.
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RealMonstrosity
Jun 28, 2011 @ 10:09 am | delete
- Great job!
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sharpturn
Mar 16, 2011 @ 3:08 am | delete
- Oh yeh! I love to watch nature programs when ants are featured. The way their colonies are so well organized just amazes me.
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BevsPaper
Dec 17, 2010 @ 9:10 am | delete
- Ants really are amazing creatures. I had no idea that they were the largest part of the insect world in population out of 750,000 types of insects. Wowsers! Although it isn't hard to believe when they decide to try to take up living space in an area of your home!
Really Kim this information was fascinating. And thank you so much for the link to my blog.
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an ant
Nov 29, 2010 @ 4:17 pm | delete
- http://www.antark.net/ant-facts/
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About the Author
by kimmanleyort
Mother, wife and photographer who never stops learning. Squidoo allows me to explore my interests and the fabulous community is an added bonus.
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