Ants: What The Hell Are These Things, Anyway? Ant-Rant, Ant-Facts and Ant-Lore

reply to post by Xoanon


Congrats Xoanon as others have mentioned on a very thoughtful and informative thread all about [ Ants ]

First I would like to add a few more "insect factoids" to your thread. Then I would like to add some of my thoughts and opinions on this whole insect and other scavenger species on earth that Way Out Number and " Out Weigh " all of the People on earth.

( It has long been recognized and documented that insects are the most diverse group of organisms, meaning that the numbers of species of insects are more than any other group. In the world, some 900 thousand different kinds of living insects are known. This representation approximates 80 percent of the world's species. The true figure of living species of insects can only be estimated from present and past studies. Most authorities agree that there are more insect species that have not been described (named by science) than there are insect species that have been previously named. Conservative estimates suggest that this figure is 2 million, but estimates extend to 30 million. In the last decade, much attention has been given to the entomofauna that exists in the canopies of tropical forests of the world. From studies conducted by Terry Erwin of the Smithsonian Institution's Department of Entomology in Latin American forest canopies, the number of living species of insects has been estimated to be 30 million. Insects also probably have the largest biomass of the terrestrial animals. At any time, it is estimated that there are some 10 quintillion (10,000,000,000,000,000,000) individual insects alive.

Recent figures indicate that there are more than 200 million insects for each human on the planet! A recent article in The New York Times claimed that the world holds 300 pounds of insects for every pound of humans. )

Source: www.si.edu...
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My thoughts:

Think about the scavenger fish in the ocean, especially the shark. Sharks teeth grow back when the shark looses any of them during their feeding frenzies. Sharks never have to worry about going to a dentist. Now think about the pain and suffering that go along with the teeth in humans. The Great " God " Creator of Everything could just have easily made man's teeth to grow back like the sharks teeth. But, it is easy to see that that was not " Gods " plan. In fact it easy to see by just this fact alone, that " God " has planned for some pain and suffering to come into mankinds life with just the way the teeth are set up inside of mankinds mouth alone.

I realize that not all who read my mention of " God " Creating all and everything, some actually do not believe in a " God " of creation. That is fine with me, each person has their right to believe in any religion or evolutionary view point on the whole creation as they see fit. I have not mentioned my belief and perspective here to try and cause a debate on religion, this is just " my " perspective and belief.

The bible does mention the " ants " in the following verses:

Pro 6:6 ¶ Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:
Pro 6:7 Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler,
Pro 6:8 Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.

These Proverbs written by King Soloman where of course being used by him as an example to be diligent and to work etc.

I personally do not like " Any " of the insect populations on earth. I see them all as just the scavengers that they are, and nothing else to me is important about them. They help clean up the whole earth in " their " way.

These scavenger species on this earth are only needed because of the " way " the earth is functioning and is operating now at this present point in time that we all live. In a " Golden Age " Past or Future - scavenger species and death dealing viruses are " Not Needed " and are absent from that " Golden Age "

This of course is - MHO my humble opinion, and take on the whole matter of this subject.

Unfortunately for all of us living on earth at this point in time, we are presently stuck with the ants, scavengers of all types, and the killer viruses... But this " Age " will run it's course in due time too... :-)

So the ants built the pyramids?

I'm so sorry, I just couldn't resist...

Nice thread, OP

reply to post by Xoanon

I stepped on my ant my mother was not amused

They're incredibly invasive

People underestimate these small little creatures far too much...Its crazy how diverse and adapted they are, in the sense of environment. Never got bitten or stung by them, but damn, those mandibles look like they could bring the pain if they bite you. I believe the Maasai actually use Siafu (Driver ants, safari ants, same name.) with their powerful mandibles to actually seal shut wounds using the clamp force from their jaw, then rip off the body and the head remains, sealing the wound for several days.

Driver ants




That thing looks like its ready to screw something up, thats for sure.

Excellent post, will share with my comrades. I for one welcome our future ant overlords, and I'l make sure to mention this when we are toiling in the ant's massive underground sugar caves.

reply to post by grobi77


I've seen that picture once before--awesome!

As I posted earlier,I live in a very rural,country place in NC and have used Terro bait at two different residences and I am serious--this sh*t WORKS! I am posting a basic link that will just give you an idea of what's available.It's to Amazon but you can get a lot of this stuff right at grocery stores and Wal-Mart or maybe home improvement and such.
The baits in the link contain a mix of something tasty to attract them and enough liquid boric acid to eventually kill them.Every spring we have your basic brown sweet ants come out mostly in the kitchen and bathroom.They are unruly and invasive as hell and you cannot leave ONE DAMN CRUMB or drop of anything without them being all up on it.
Cut one of these baits open,leave them where you see them the most and let it do its thing.At first they will be announcing the new stuff to the rest of the colony and they will be all over this stuff.It's slow acting so they carry it to the queen and within 3-5 days--very few ants if any and after 7-14 days,even with food around they are GONE.

But you have to be patient for a couple days and let them do their thing and try not to kill any cuz they gotta stay alive to bring the poison to the queen and the others who stay in the nest and such.
It's fairly safe for humans,so can be left on counters.Read directions regarding placement if you have pets or small children,but this is FAR safer than other things and poisons.
If you have a massive infestation,there are outdoor pellets you can use and they work wonders,too.I bought 10 baits in the spring (which came early here) and put the baits out and after two weeks,they were gone.After blazing heat here in NC,it was very dry for awhile and then it rained torrentially for awhile.We had some ants come back into the bathroom,and I had taken the old baits out and I opened a new one and put it on the sink counter and in 4 days they were gone and haven';t seen ANY since then.
Once you place the baits,try to make it so you don't have to move it and try not to move or clean around it until you see they are pretty much gone,as they use pheremones to find food and such.
Hope this helps--In the south--we SWEAR by Terro products!

Terro baits and pellets

Here's a very cool documentary about ants. It's ridiculously awesome how they perform as a community.
I never knew ants have their own livestock. They herd some sort of bugs which eat plants and excrete sugar, which ants eat. They take great care of something that is not their own kind. Sort of like pets.

I really recommend watching the whole thing if you have some extra time.

They're a species like any other. And like many species have a basic communication method. Main difference is that they are born with it into their minds, because it's chemical, not verbal.


They're not that special. They're just doing what they've done right.

My enemy the FL Bull ant!!

entnemdept.ufl.edu...

Mean buggers very mean

Some fly, a flying torpedo!!

Most everything we see was once created in some off-planet, underground or on-earth laboratory. The people who play "God" created these little buggers we call ants. Looking at an ants head, it would seem there is no room in there to think. Yet ants still do things that impress people.

There is something magical about small insects. Like California's black widow that used to kill 5% of all bite victims b4 better medicine was available. A spider ending the life of a human being???

It sounds like the "Gods" who run earth, whipped up a venom that kills humans and created a spider to carry it. Then unleashed the beast where ever they pleased. I had a family member kill over 15 Black Widows just in one wood pile.

Is the reason for creating these bugs FEAR? They did run horror films for almost every kind of insect. Its a small scale feeling of fear when you come across a freaky bug, but its still fear.

Easy pest control:

Buy some Borax, or boric acid, at the grocery, mix about a tablespoon with copious amounts of sugar, stir into a bowl of water. Wait a few days, they take the bait to the queen. It does take a few days of watching them trail from the bowl to the nest, but hang in there. It will eradicate the swarm.

I hate to kill even an insect but when they are infesting your home, what else can you do?

DO NOT PUT IN REACH OF CHILDREN OR PETS!!

reply to post by Xoanon


Ok I got an ant story to add. We have ants that make these huge conical anthills that can reach 4-5 ft tall if left unchecked. One day I noticed an anthill had appeard behind my house and was not far enough away from it for my comfort, so I decided to level it out.

I went and got my trusty rake and raked it out evenly over a 20x20 foot area and went about my business of cutting the grass. A very distinct and sharp smell emanated from it, sort of like sour lemons

I was completely across the yard, maybe 60 ft away from the anthill and I noticed a lot of movement in the grass, and stopped to see just what it was. What it was, was every ant in the yard, was moving directly towards the disturbed hill that I had raked out. They were obviously hurrying back to the anthill and were very obviously in distress mode. I had to wonder if that scent was a distress call, that called out to every ant in the colony to hurry back.

So I was amazed, and I got to admit, feeling a little bit of guilt watching their struggles to get back. I went about my business and thought no more about it that day. The next day I happened to be out back again, and I noticed that the area of dirt I had raked out from the anthill was smaller by about a foot all the way around the edges.

I was intrigued! The next day it was smaller yet. In about 4 days, those ants had rebuilt that anthill using the same pieces of dirt they had used in the first place! I swear they rebuilt it with the same shape exactly! Since then I have left them alone, and I got respect for their abilities and obvious cognizance! Sure gave me food for thought. So, there's my ant story!

reply to post by Xoanon


Best. Thread. Ever. Seriously. I come here for conspiracy, for philosophy, for discussions of "weird" physics and scientific discoveries. But this was simply awesome. Informative, intriguing, and funny to boot. Well done, sir!

I would like to add - Texas is the state I least want to ever live in, and those infestation maps pretty much solidified that decision once and for all.

reply to [url= by Xoanon[/url]



I don't know if it's too late but a bottle of AMDRO would ease your mind. I've never seen anything kill them so well. You sprinkle it around the mound or create a permieter around your place.
I've heard the won't cross a line of mint, cinnamon, diatomaceous earth......
lastly- you can buy bacteria online called NEMATODES and water them into the ground...two times I think. They'll eat ants and termites and lots of other things too. It's a much more 'natural' massacr
good luck!

Cool thread about this worlds most abundant inhabitant. I watched some ante here at my home (move) their colony from the back yard to the front yard. A distance of about 60 70 feet. But what blew me away was how many ants we saw. They were on the move for days. A steady stream from back yard to front yard.

I was sittibg on the stoop, probally day three of them moving and was watching them file by & one looked a little weird, I reached out and touched it and it was one ant carring another, The one that got drop sort ran around in circle and the one doing the carrieing sat still, then all of a sudden the one ant scoops up the other one and went on their way. All of the rest of the ants I saw were piggybacking other ants.

I went online and found these were the "movers" who were carrying the young juveniles who could'nt withstand the journey. Amazed at this feat. If their inside, they die. If their outside I let them live. Humans will never ever have the co-operation amoung each other as ants do. We would rather kill each other than work toward a commom goal of colony survival . And that's planet wide.

reply to post by chrisb9


Ants are very fragile and weak, they get stepped on by man, cars and easily eaten by other bigger insects ....
They are probably jealous of the cat when you spend $35.00 for it's food and you buy poison to kill them, maybe if you give them their own food they won't invade other's food. Next time try to relocate them rather than massacring them.

Where do cousins come from?

Ant holes.



That joke is a small token of my appreciation for all your work and talent invested in educating us about these crazy creatures. And excellent visual aids, too.





Oh!
This just in...a riddle from a house guest:

What do you call the bigger ant who puts up with a lot of crap from the smaller ant?

Taller-ant!

I never knew Ants were fascinating and awesome animals! Nice videos and info OP
I've learned a lot today.

reply to post by Xoanon


ok threads like this is why i still love ats!
its always a good combo when you can enjoy reading something and educate yourself at the same time.
well done xoanon!