Look at these ants "pave" a piece of sticky tape with sand | Boing Boing

2022-10-09 12:53:33 By : Ms. Bella wu

Apparently, ants don't like sticky surfaces, as you can see in this time-lapse video. When they're placed next to a piece of double-sided tape and a small pile of crushed glass, they go to work, covering the tape with the grains. We have a lot to learn from these little creatures.

Another remarkable example of tool use in ants: fire ants "paving" sticky surfaces. I've seen signs of this behavior, but I didn't expect it to be so robust until my friend told me about it (Wang et al., 2021 Insect Science). pic.twitter.com/BaHBmlgtXM

In this video, ants build bridges in mid-air using just their bodies. The video shows a sped-up version of how the ant bridge gets formed and then crossed by other ants. Some of the ants even carry large crumbs across the bridge. I think it's pretty cool that despite not being able to talk with… READ THE REST

When food isn't readily available, honeypot ants drop nectar into larger ants in the colony who will serve as living storage tanks of nourishment for the whole colony. From Deep Look: The species of honeypot ant featured in our video, Myrmecocystus mexicanus, forages at night in the Southwest and Mexico. Workers venture out of their… READ THE REST

I always enjoy Temponaut Timelapse's videos of ants and other small creatures crawling all over a piece of food and making it disappear. I wonder what kind of similar timelapse he could do with people instead of bugs? READ THE REST

We thank our sponsor for making this content possible; it is not written by the editorial staff nor does it necessarily reflect its views. Communication is the key to, well, almost everything. Understanding and being understood is so core to the experience of life that species will do almost anything to make sure they're heard… READ THE REST

We thank our sponsor for making this content possible; it is not written by the editorial staff nor does it necessarily reflect its views. We know that technology can get overwhelming and is mostly very helpful, but none of your electronics can be good to you dead. Your phone is super useful daily, but it's your… READ THE REST

We thank our sponsor for making this content possible; it is not written by the editorial staff nor does it necessarily reflect its views. A reliable chainsaw is necessary once you become a homeowner, but it often takes a lot of effort to lift and operate. The Pocket ChainSaw is a must for anyone who needs to cut and… READ THE REST

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