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The Celibate Life of Ants

Could this be another life lesson from the ants?

The queen ant is the only ant allowed to reproduce. The others are forced to remain celibate and work for the good of all.

All ants that are caught in the act, or even thinking about the act, are attacked by the other ants.

It's true!

Apparently, an ant that is feeling romantic emits an odor that is easily detectable by the other ants. The scientists that conducted this experiment actually dabbed a bit of the aroma on some unsuspecting ants and then placed them back inside the colony, and they were attacked.

The only time the ant colony experiences "free love" is when the queen ant dies.

"The idea that social harmony is dependent on strict systems to prevent and punish cheating seems to apply to most successful societies," Liebig explained in a comment released with his paper. Regardless of the genome, in matters of sex, nature still appears to prefer us not to stray.


Read the full story at Time.com.
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Comments

  1. Mel Avila AlarillaJan 13, 2009, 2:34:00 PM

    Wow, this is very informative. This is the first time I learned about this. Very intriguing indeed. Thanks for the valuable post. God bless you always.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Reflections Magazine editorJan 15, 2009, 4:22:00 PM

    My comment is a little off topic. When my oldest son was little, he once asked and I quote "Mom, do ants have lungs?" I of course said "Son, I really don't know." My son was about 5 years old when he asked me this question and quite honestly I had never and I mean never wondered how ants breathed. And now this lesson...wow!!!!! I will now have to conduct extensive research... LOL

    Great post. Actually I enjoy all your posts. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete

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