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How do ants pass the winter?
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Although ants can be seen in various
places from spring to autumn, they go into hibernation in the winter. In
addition, from spring to autumn, many ants are seen to come from, and go
into, the entrances of their nests, but these entrances are closed in winter
and no ants are seen to come from there.
Where do ants pass the winter? |
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A female ant of the Camponotus obscuripes
species hibernating restlessly in a withered tree to pass the winter. |
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The body temperature
of ants changes in response to the atmospheric temperature. In winter, their
body temperature falls so greatly that their movements inevitably grow sluggish.
Therefore, they hibernate restlessly in relatively warm places, such as
the soil or under the bark of trees.
Most species of ants eat a large amount of food in autumn to put on fat,
thereby allowing them to go without food through the winter.
The entrance to the ant nest nests is closed as a natural result of the
slowdown and cessation of ant traffic. Furthermore, soil or sand has accumulated
around the entrance. When spring comes and it gets warmer, the ants become
active and open up the entrance of their nest to venture outside. |
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Ants in one of Aesop's Fables:
"The grasshopper and the ants"
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"The grasshopper
and the ants" is one of Aesopﾕs Fables. A brief outline of the story is
as follows: Ants that have earnestly worked to forage and store food during
the summer and autumn, feed on the stored food in winter, and help a lazy
grasshopper that has not stored any food for winter.
Ants of the Messor aciculatus species carry plant seeds into their nests
and store them there. During winter, they feed on the stored seeds.
Ants of the other species never store food in preparation for winter. |
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Ants of Messor aciculatus species
store food during autumn. |
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Ant
kingdom