Of all insects, ants are considered the most hardworking and hardy. What is life like in an anthill?
Anthill scheme
The place for the anthill and the materials for the house ants always choose carefully. The anthill itself consists of a ground part and an underground nest. From above it is covered with twigs and needles that protect the home from the weather. And if in appearance he looks unprepossessing, then inside there is a whole town.
Inputs and outputs
Entrances and exits serve not only to enter and exit, but also perfectly ventilate the room. The strongest and largest ants guard the entrance to the anthill, covering it with their bodies. Before rain, the entrance closes so that all walkways and chambers remain dry.
Solarium
Usually this is the upper chamber, or room. Due to its location, it heats up very quickly and ants come here to warm themselves. And in the spring they can carry heat on their body, warming up the entire anthill.
Cemetery
If you go down the anthill, you can stumble on piles of dead ants and garbage. All this develops into a separate cell, which is not very deep and not far from the ventilation.
Wintering chamber
Like bears, ants also hibernate to endure severe colds. To do this, they need their own lair. Usually it is located somewhere in the middle of the anthill.
Storage
In the vault, the ants put the seeds of plants in case they can not find food for themselves.Some ants are involved in the care of the food and even carry it out in the sun to dry.
Royal chambers
In the royal chambers, the queen of ants lives - the queen. Usually she is also the first resident in her colony. The uterus very rarely leaves the anthill. The whole point of her life is to lay eggs.
Nursery and kindergarten in anthill
These are chambers in which eggs, larvae and pupae are stored. Nannies are always nearby, because the larvae need food and round-the-clock supervision. They carry them up or down the anthill depending on the weather, trying to keep them always warm and with the necessary humidity.
Pantry
The place where all the most nutritious is located. Here ants stack caterpillars and other food they get.
During his life, an ant can only do one job, or it can change with other ants. But he performs any appointment with great accuracy and dedication. Works requiring large physical exertion are more often performed by young and hardy ants.
Species of ants
- Female (uterus) of ants - the main job is to lay eggs.
- Working ants - build, clean and repair an ant hill.
- Guards - protect the entrance from raids of alien ants and other insects.
- Miners - get food for the whole family.
- Nannies - monitor the state of larvae, eggs and pupae.
- Carers - take care of young animals, walk and train.
- Food keepers - responsible for the quality and storage of food.
- Doctors - take care of sick and wounded.
- Farmers - grow mushrooms.
How do ants communicate with each other?
Ants communicate with each other with gestures and smell.. Thanks to this, they can not only ask for food, but also instantly warn the entire ant hill about the danger. This is a very necessary thing, because in many species slavery is widespread. They kidnap other people's dolls and grow slaves from them for their ant hill. Such ants are doomed to life work in a strange family.
