Myrmecology thread. Ask me questions about ants, I'll answer.
Note, I'm not too knowledgeable on what kills them; I prefer to study them.
>>768046752
Hello, nice thread idea.
My question:
Would you call the society of ants a monarchist society or a communist society?
>>768046840
Communist. The queen doesn't actually make anyone do anything and everyone's instincts are based on what is best for society as a whole. Everyone goes out of their way to do everything selflessly for the greater good.
>>768046944
Ok next question:
When do ants go to war? Do ants know when their "tribe" is inferior or do they just go to war no matter what, for example, if food is scarce.
Also, do ant wars always end in the complete distruction of one of the tribes or do they also establishe a truce or peace after a while?
>>768047436
also sorry for my bad english in the last post, holy shit. I am really tired after my late shift and also I am not a native english speaker but what the hell, this is embarrassing
How do you think trapjaw ants move their jaws so fast? It’s literally the fastest moving part of a living orgsnism, right? Pretty sure mantis shrimp are a second, but it’s not even close
>>768047436
Ants go to war when supplies are scarce, or if the attacking species specializes in preying on other ants, or even if the species being attacked just has an abundance of resources. Some ant species will even invade colonies in order to use them as sort of "outpost" colonies for rearing brood.
Ant wars almost always result in the destruction of the neighboring colony.
>>768047636
The mechanism is very likely similar to that of a mantis shrimp. Sort of a rubber band type effect.
>>768046752
There are ants inside the light switches of my house but I don’t know why they get attracted to those things.
I don’t want to kill them, but I’ll like to get them away. What can I do?
>>768048403
Put chrysanthemum around your house.
>>768048258
Thanks again for the answers.
This might be a silly question but do you think ants are "just" a hive mind or do you think they have individual feelings or a unique character?
Also do you think they will advance a little more? I mean yes, they have their ant hills and deep tunnels with specialized rooms but do you think they will ever develope more than that? Like using weapons or something like that.
when will ants finally conquer the world so we can live in the utopia they will create?
>>768046752
Do you actually study them or just really like them?
>>768048474
Ants act similarly to a machine. Every action is a response to something. It's not that they have a hivemind but that fact on top of the fact that they communicate through pheromones which get spread through the colony very quickly which tell the other ants to perform a certain task.
So, let's say 500 ants are digging a tunnel then one ant enters the colony. It lays a pheromone down that tells the other ants there is an attractive source of food nearby, and another ant will eventually follow. If that ant agrees it will lay down its own pheromone trail which makes the trail in general more attractive. Eventually the entire group of ants will follow suit.This also applies to an enemy attacking, but it's more intense then.
Let's say a wasp enters an ant colony. Instantly ants will lay down an attack/defense pheromone that is very strong and, once other ants smell this pheromone, they will lay down the same pheromone and it spreads even quicker than the food one. Then, anything that is moving which is not an ant of that colony is an enemy.
>>768048543
Probably never. :(
>>768048664
Both. I really like ants and am beginning to study them. I'm reading Borror and DeLonge's Introduction to the Study of Insects and The Secret Lives of Ants. Might get Advances in Myrmecology next.
>>768046752
Ever let an ant crawl up your urethra?
>>768049396
No but I imagine it doesn't feel the best nor the worst.
>>768049074
If 2 ant colonies of the same ant species(but with non related queens) ally each other to defeat a 3rd colony of a differenct species?
>>768049634
This is called polygynoy. From Ancient Greek πολύ (polú, “many”) + γυνή (gunḗ, “woman, wife”); synchronically, poly- + -gyny.
A lot of species exhibit this behavior, it's something that is often done when resources are scarce or competition is otherwise high. I
I'd love to see ants evolve where like their frontal body is becoming like our upper body with their frontal 2 legs being their arms.
Then medieval ants clash in huge battles with little bark shields and points little sticks.
>>768049914
Polygyny*
>>768049948
Basically praying mantises with a colony mentality?
>>768050024
yeh.
>>768046752
I swear that I once saw a couple of hundred ants link up and form a neural network in order to solve a problem. Is that common?
>>768046752
Thoughts on this game? pic related.
I'm thinking about starting a ant colony as like a pet. Which is the best type to start off with
>>768050325
Go into deeper detail. What exactly do you mean?
>>768050338
Used to play it all the time as a kid. 10/10
>>768050541
Any of the camponotus genus is perfect for a first-time owner.
>>768051000
If I wanted to start an ant colony should I avoid those jelly colonies that let me see everything?
I heard its bad for the ants because they need darkness.
>>768046752
I heard of something like an ant death march or death swirl. Does it exist and what is it?
>>768051000
I had ants under my apartment, and they would appear each day to raid a different item of food, such as a coffee stain or a fragment of sugar. They were very organised.
So, one day while they were in a line behind the dresser, doing their thing, I blocked up the three holes that they used to enter the house.
For a while they tried getting through the holes, each in turn, with a bit of milling around. Then they went off up the wall to a quiet corner of the room and ceiling. By now I was watching to see what they would do.
They gathered together into a crowd, I think only one ant deep, fairly tightly packed. Each ant seemed to have legs touching the adjacent ants. And they stopped. They stayed there, in that connected group, for a long time.
And it gradually dawned on me what they were doing. They had formed a neural network. A brain. They needed to think and they built a brain to do it.
>>768051297
the ants follow scent trails so when one follows another the scent trails build up and they end up in circles whilst all the while attracting more amts. Eventually they all die of exhastion. Stupid little fuckwipes.
What's a good starter ant species for a new ant keeper. Ive been doing a ton of research for that last 2 months but I'm just scared to start.
Where did the ant anon go? this shit is damn interesting
>>768051000
What about this?
>>768053217
I watch this youtube channel called ants canada. Some nerd has colonies in his house and he explains alot about ants. Fire ants occasionally break out and sting him so it's not all complete talking.
What is the largest ant colony you personally have witnessed? How many would you say made it up.
gone for 2 days left water in my humidifier during a drought and these fucks set themselves up god damn
>>768049634
its actually bad ass they've found "mega colonies" so like im too retarded to explain it correctly, but certain ants of the same genus even if they were born in nests on the opposite side of the world, they immdiately accept each other and work together
>>768050541
carpenter ants... don't need to get roaches and shit, fruit and seed type shit will do, i recommend watching antscanada... he makes some bad ass ant colonies but the minor things are interesting if u want to start your own
What physical configuration do ants arrange themselves in to build ant "bridges"? Is it one humans can mimic to create similar structures?
>>768046752
Do you think the queen likes her job? I got into an argument with my mom about this.
>>768052724
camponotos i think is the genus name.. get carpenter ants or some shit that you won't need to feed insects
>>768046752
What are some good ways to kill them?
>>768054532
holy shit, i thought those were ants but thats brood?]
>>768055085
nope, there are a bunch of ant species that the queens are basically slaves forced to pump out eggs... it really isn't as lavish as you would think
>>768055067
don't think the human body is strong enough to replicate the bridges and structures fire arms use
>>768047636
>>768047636
Iirc, pistol shrimp got 'em both beat.
But they're all pretty fucking fast.
>>768046752
How many individual army ants are in an army?
>>768055225
there are some ants in the photo carrying out their brood
