In a lot of peoples ants are considered the embodiment of diligence. These amazing creatures created their own civilization with a strict hierarchy, division of duties and huge underground cities, pierced with branched underground tunnels. In addition, the ants are surprisingly well able to adapt, being able to survive in almost any conditions.
Ants originated from beings similar to wasps, about 110-130 million years ago. They lived side by side with dinosaurs, but did not die out, unlike these giants.
Colonies of ants can include from a dozen to several million individuals.
Ants live on 12,000 different species. The length of the smallest of them is only 0.07 centimeters, and the largest – up to 5 centimeters.
Many consider termites as ants, although they are not even related. The nearest relatives of termites are cockroaches.
Tiny ants make up 15-20% of the total biomass of the animals of the Earth, exceeding the mass of vertebrate creatures.
Scientists have calculated that on the planet at any given time, about 10 quadrillion ants live. Each person accounts for about a million of these insects.
Working ants live up to 3 years, while an ant queen can reign until age 30.
These insects can take prisoners of other kinds of ants, forcing them to work for the benefit of their colony.
Scientists believe that ants are able to carry objects 5000 times heavier than themselves. For comparison, snails can only carry ten times their weight.
Ants are able to reach speeds of up to 7.62 centimeters per second. For a man, the comparable speed is almost 55 kilometers per hour.
13. Muraviev – the most intelligent insects. Their brain, despite its modest size, consists of 250,000 cells.
Ants hear feet and knees – they catch the ground vibrations.
Ants willingly tidy badgers. Pushing the tongue into the anthill, they wait until the ants attacking the uninvited guest will stick to it, and simply swallow the prey.
Each colony of ants has its own smell.
Ants queen deals exclusively with laying eggs. Caring for them is the duty of worker ants.
Some ants do not build anthills, but lead a nomadic way of life. When it’s time to move on, they collect their larvae, food, eggs and queen, and then go on a journey.
The bite of a black bulldog ant can be fatal for a person. Fortunately, an antidote was created for this case.
Ants are capable of interactive learning – that is, they can acquire knowledge based on someone else’s example, not their own. In addition, only mammals have this ability.
Some species of ants are able to use as a reference the Earth’s magnetic field, like some sharks.
Ants are able to form from their bodies “living bridges” for crossing water or plant barriers.
Mexican dish “escamoles” includes eggs of several kinds of ants.
Some South American tribes of Indians use ants in rituals of dedication of a boy into a man – a teenager is put on the arm a special sleeve with living insects inside. After this test, the initiate’s hand remains paralyzed and swollen for several days, sometimes the child’s fingers turn black with numerous bites.
The ants learned how to cultivate living organisms to meet their needs.
