Ants harvesting aphids - 3 pictures
Hi all,
As you know ... or don't know ... ants farm aphids.
According to the internet:
Chemicals on ants' feet tranquilize and subdue colonies of aphids, keeping them close-by as a ready source of food, says new research. The study throws new light on the complex relationship between ants and the colonies of aphids whose sugary secretions the ants eat.
So this afternoon I saw them do it on my grape vine. So I took some pictures of it for you all. (And for me of course!)
So here you are: Ants farming aphids
follow: @divyne - vote/follow/resteem
all are: iso 800 - f7.1 - 50mm with extender - 1/125sec - Sony nex 6
Great pictures!
I was so fascinated when I first heard about ants farming aphids and the more you read into it the weirder it gets. Some ant species have selectively bred their 'cattle' so much that their aphids can't even survive without the ants anymore. There are some videos of ants moving the aphids to safety just before a storm and then bringing them back out to 'graze' once the storm passed.
Yeah ants are some pretty crazy creatures ... they're also very hard to photograph ... they are quite a bit faster then you would expect! :)
not easy to make this kind of images , bin there done that :) they run around and never smile at the camera .
no shit ... you should see the other 200 pictures I made :)
be happy it's digital photography and not wasted film :)
ha ... yes ... digital opened up sooo many possibilities!!!
Very nice captures. 100% from me plus a resteem :)
Well thank you very much, dear sir! :)
:) Gimme more :)
These photos are incredible. Also, useful information for my gardening. Resteemed!
Thank you!
Utterly great photos of these farming ants! Only heard this once before - that's so amazing!
I knew they did this .... but I had never seen it. They don't hurt them, they are just constantly busy with them, it's strange to see.