Some species of ants, e.g., army ants, are completely blind and can become disorientated and march in circles until they die of exhaustion. Army ants navigate by following pheromone trails left behind by others. However, should an ant lose the scent, it might loop around and start following another ant in the group; the others follow and a huge ant spiral forms. The largest ant ‘death spiral’ ever discovered was 1200 feet in diameter, with each ant completing a circuit in two and a half hours.
The insects, found in South America, hunt in swarms of up to 200,000 individuals and are capable of killing 100,000 living creatures a day.
They eat essentially anything that moves and there’s very little defence, because they attack in such huge numbers.
Cornell University entomologist Sean Brady, while studying army ants in South America, described the amazing phenomenon of the insects marching, which is entirely silent.
He explained that you know they’re coming from the reactions of other creatures in the jungle.
He said: ‘The other insects are scared, and they make noises as they flee the invading army. Ant birds follow the ants from the sky and feast on the remnants left behind by the ants.
‘You will hear the high-pitched chirping of the other insects, and you’ll hear them and other small animals scurrying in fear. They know what is next.’
Credit : Daily Mail
Picture Credit : Google
