Sahara desert ant
Encyclopedia
The Sahara Desert ant is a desert
-dwelling ant
of the genus Cataglyphis
. It inhabits the Sahara Desert and is one of the most heat tolerant
animals known to date. However, there are at least four other species of Cataglyphis living in the Sahara desert, for example C. bombycina
, C. savigny, C. mauritanicus and C. fortis.
While no known land animal can live permanently at a temperature over 50°C
, Sahara desert ants can sustain a body temperature well above 50°C with surface temperatures of up to 70°C.
. By doing this the ant can venture far from its nest in search of food. Because of the blistering heat, it can only do this for about 3–5 minutes/day (the hottest time of the day, when all its predators are in hiding from the sun). When the ant finds a dead insect it then looks at the sun and because of its periodic references to the sun's angle it knows exactly what the shortest route back to the nest is. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology have also verified that desert microhabitats have unique odour signatures that can guide the ants back to the nest.
This skill, which has also been observed in the behavior of foraging honey bee
s, is elemental to the survival of this species of ant under the harsh conditions in which it lives.
This behavior allows Cataglyphis to travel farther from its nest than any other creature that lives in the Sahara, with respect to size.
to count its steps in a harsh environment where odors quickly vanish, enabling it to "count back" to its nest, http://www.sciencenewsforkids.org/articles/20060809/Note3.asp.
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
-dwelling ant
Ant
Ants are social insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from wasp-like ancestors in the mid-Cretaceous period between 110 and 130 million years ago and diversified after the rise of flowering plants. More than...
of the genus Cataglyphis
Cataglyphis
Cataglyphis is a genus of ant in the subfamily Formicinae. Its most famous species is C. bicolor, the Sahara Desert ant, which runs on hot sand to find insects that died of heat exhaustion, and can sustain body temperatures of up to 50°C....
. It inhabits the Sahara Desert and is one of the most heat tolerant
Extremophile
An extremophile is an organism that thrives in physically or geochemically extreme conditions that are detrimental to most life on Earth. In contrast, organisms that live in more moderate environments may be termed mesophiles or neutrophiles...
animals known to date. However, there are at least four other species of Cataglyphis living in the Sahara desert, for example C. bombycina
Saharan silver ant
The Saharan silver ant is a type of ant that lives in the Sahara Desert.Due to the extreme high temperatures of their habitat and the threat of predators, the ants are active outside their nest for only a few minutes per day...
, C. savigny, C. mauritanicus and C. fortis.
Background
Sahara desert ants are scavengers. They forage for the corpses of insects and other arthropods which have succumbed to the heat stress of their desert environment.While no known land animal can live permanently at a temperature over 50°C
Celsius
Celsius is a scale and unit of measurement for temperature. It is named after the Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius , who developed a similar temperature scale two years before his death...
, Sahara desert ants can sustain a body temperature well above 50°C with surface temperatures of up to 70°C.
Measuring the sun's angle
This ant ventures far from its burrow in the Sahara desert, which has almost no identifiable features. While venturing out it periodically takes measurements of its angle in respect to the SunSun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
. By doing this the ant can venture far from its nest in search of food. Because of the blistering heat, it can only do this for about 3–5 minutes/day (the hottest time of the day, when all its predators are in hiding from the sun). When the ant finds a dead insect it then looks at the sun and because of its periodic references to the sun's angle it knows exactly what the shortest route back to the nest is. Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology have also verified that desert microhabitats have unique odour signatures that can guide the ants back to the nest.
This skill, which has also been observed in the behavior of foraging honey bee
Bee
Bees are flying insects closely related to wasps and ants, and are known for their role in pollination and for producing honey and beeswax. Bees are a monophyletic lineage within the superfamily Apoidea, presently classified by the unranked taxon name Anthophila...
s, is elemental to the survival of this species of ant under the harsh conditions in which it lives.
This behavior allows Cataglyphis to travel farther from its nest than any other creature that lives in the Sahara, with respect to size.
Pedometer
The ant appears to use an internal pedometerPedometer
A pedometer is a device, usually portable and electronic or electromechanical, that counts each step a person takes by detecting the motion of the person's hips...
to count its steps in a harsh environment where odors quickly vanish, enabling it to "count back" to its nest, http://www.sciencenewsforkids.org/articles/20060809/Note3.asp.