

#The myth of the ant queen individuality windows
The system emerged out of patterns of human behavior, with thousands of individuals each systematically following a set of unspoken rules that led to a largely noticeable outcome in the structure of Manchester ("The bright shop windows attract more bright shop windows and drive the impoverished toward the hidden core"). The town was built "less according to a plan and less within the limitations of official regulations- and indeed more through accident- than any other town" and yet, it had somehow arranged itself into a clearly defined order, with the working-class community concealed so thoroughly that it would be difficult to find it if one was not deliberately searching for it. No single ant directed the others to the locations.Ī parallel to this is seen in Engels's 'The Condition of the Working Class in England', where he writes about Manchester. Organized complexity is first seen in Deborah Gordon's ant colonies- the individual ants each follow a systematic set of actions that leads to a clearly visible 'macrobehavior', such as the placement of the midden and the cemetery. The essay, however, leans more towards explanations of other kinds of complexity- like 'organized complexity'. Complexity is normally understood as a "sensory overload"- something that completely overwhelms the human nervous system, such as the crowds and noise of a city. It is reiterated many times in relation to all the examples explored in the essay.

The largest ant’s nest ever found was over 3,700 miles wide!įound in Argentina in 2000, the ginormous colony housed 33 ant populations which had merged into one giant supercolony, with millions of nests and billions of workers! Images ⓒ Getty Images: Ants on leaf (483596365), Ant carrying leaf (157168347)."Complexity" is a word that stands out in the passage.

Plus, they can send chemical signals (called pheremones) released through their body to send messages to other ants! They send out warnings when danger’s near, leave trails of pheremones leading to food sources and even use them to attract a mate – a sort of ant love potion! 10.
#The myth of the ant queen individuality driver
Ants don’t have ears, and some of them don’t have eyes!Īnts “listen” by feeling vibrations from the ground through their feet, and eye-less ants such as the driver ant species can communicate by using their antennae! Male ants have wings and their only function is to mate with the queen. The colony, also called a formicary, is made up of one or more egg-laying queens and a large amount of female “worker” ants who tend to her, build and maintain the nest, forage for food and and care for the young. Ants are social insects which live in colonies Ironic really, when you consider the name… 8. Ants can be found on every single continent except Antarctica The aptly named species of trap jaw ant, can close its jaws at 140mph, which it uses to kill its prey or injure predators. Ants hold the record for the fastest movement in the animal kingdom The ant is one of the world’s strongest creatures in relation to its sizeĪ single ant can carry 50 times its own bodyweight, and they’ll even work together to move bigger objects as a group! Ants carry leaves and twigs back to their nests! 6.

Unlike some bugs who might only live for days or even hours, the queen ant of one particular species – the Pogonomyrmex Owyheei – can live up to 30 years – so be careful not to stand on her! 5. North America’s red imported fire ant might only be little, but the tiny critters have a painful bite which causes a burning sensation – hence the name “fire ant”, which costs the US millions in veterinary and medical bills every year! They’ve also been known to cause damage to farmer’s crops. Fire ants cause over £3 billion worth of damage a year! Living in humid jungle conditions such as the Amazon, their sting has been compared to being hit by a bullet – ouch! 3. The bullet ant is said to have the most painful sting in the world! Ranging from the ant you might find scuttling across your picnic to the ants building underground fortresses in the rainforest, to flying ants!Ģ. There are over 12,000 ant species worldwide Check out our ten favourite facts about ants that are guaranteed to blow your mind… 1.
