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Did Ants Obtain Antibiotics Before Us?
A recent paper in the Journal of Nature Communications outlines an incredible discovery that will change the way you view insects.
I have spent much of my life assuming that insects were essentially mindless creatures, but a recent study shows that these tiny creatures may be more complicated than that.
Before we can really understand the study, we must first understand some things about ants. Firstly, they have a much better grasp of teamwork than we humans do.
Many species of ants will use each other's bodies to help bridge gaps between objects such as leaves. They will also break up large food sources and carry it back one by one to the nest. They use similar methods for building their nest.
Ants are also very good at delegating tasks, but before we can understand how exactly that works, let's talk about how they communicate.
Ants Communicate, and They Do It Well
Ants don't communicate through words, but that doesn't stop them from getting the message across. In fact, ants have been observed communicating through many methods, such as body language, touch, and on rare occasions, such as when the nest is disturbed, through sound.
Possibly most important, however, is through smell. Ants commonly use pheromones to identify themselves not only as colony member but also to express their job within the colony.
These pheromones can also be used as markers, guiding fellow ants toward potential food and water sources.
Our History With Antibiotics
Now that we have some understanding of ants let's talk about antibiotics.
In 1928, Alexander Fleming’s groundbreaking discovery set the stage for a cascade of scientific breakthroughs that would forever…
