How big is an ant hole? People poured cement into the ant hole, but it was still not full after pouring 10 tons...

When you see some ants and small ant holes on the ground, can you imagine how big their underground ant holes are?

Although we know that ants are highly organized, social, and gregarious animals that often live together in hundreds or thousands, it may still be difficult for us to imagine their living space.

This is what it looks like from the ground. | wiki

In 2012, a group of scientists discovered an abandoned anthill in Brazil. From the ground, they were not very big (from a human perspective), but in order to uncover the ant nest, the researchers decided to inject concrete from ant holes on the surface, fill the channels in the abandoned nest , and then dig it out.

This is what the surface of an ant hole in Brazil looks like.

It sounds simple, but in actual operation, it took the researchers 10 days to fill the entire tunnel and used 10 tons of concrete . This shows that the seemingly unprepossessing ant nest is actually a "super metropolis."

This is an ant city | Reference 1

After 10 days of preparation, the researchers finally started digging. Because the project was so huge, an excavator was used for the excavation. A total of 40 tons of soil were dug in the whole process , and this huge ant maze was truly revealed before our eyes.

Digging an ant hole actually requires such a huge project. | Reference 1

It was not until it was dug out that scientists discovered how amazing this ant nest was. Not only was it incredibly large, about 8 meters deep underground, but it also had a very sophisticated structure.

The ant metropolis contains a variety of tunnels that look carefully designed, with intricate "roads" connecting circular rooms to achieve efficient transportation. There are also various "paths" to connect the "fungus gardens" cultivated by the ants and garbage dumps . Some designs can keep the entire underground nest well ventilated .

The rooms and "roads" in the ant city | Reference 1

As you can imagine, this once abandoned ant city once undertook a variety of complex functions. In addition to using collective intelligence to dig tunnels, it also needed to transport garbage out of the nest in a timely manner and transport food through the maze-like rooms.

Turning abandoned ant nests into art has even become a growing hobby. Anthill Art is an art organization that injects non-toxic zinc or aluminum into abandoned ant nests to create unique works of art.

Researchers at Caltech wanted to know how ants dig a nest, so they placed some ants in a jar and used X-rays to see the specific details of the ants' excavation.

Research results released in 2021 show that ants may not be "smart" designers, but they are very talented. The researchers said: "They have accidentally discovered an excavation technique that conforms to the laws of physics, but is extremely efficient." Therefore, they can dig tunnels underground that will not collapse.

The researchers also believe that this digging behavior needs further study, and perhaps it can be used by us in the future, such as simulating the digging of ants for computer modeling, or even making "bionic ants" that can help humans dig tunnels.

References

[1]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dECE7285GxU

[2]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Xvsxarw-J0

[3]https://www.caltech.edu/about/news/the-science-of-underground-kingdoms

[4]https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2095335/Underground-ant-city-Brazil-rivals-Great-Wall-China-labyrinth-highways.html

[5]https://medtigo.com/news/researchers-expose-brazils-hidden-underground-ant-metropolis/

[6]https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00040-022-00848-6#citeas

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Source: Bring Science Home (ID: steamforkids)

Author: Skin

Editor: Yinuo

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