New life

Awais Yaqub

:huh As i am close to slavery (uni starts from monday) i am shooting my neighbours a lot. Yesterday i saw very small polan grains on flower and ants doing weird things on them :scratch As i am not shooting at full 12x because of low light i thought to look polan grain from near :huh they were moving and actually they were new born kids of ants. here are images

here you can see one very difficult still at not full zoom


Here are elder bros finaly they have started to move and walk around :barb




This is one wierd behaviour i am was trying to catch they transfer something mouth to mouth may be food for newly born ?

Ann McRae

Great photos Awais.

I don't think those are ant offspring though. Ants lay eggs = larvae that then pupate and hatch as ants.

I think those are aphid nymphs. Ants actually 'farm' other insects. I think (but stand to be corrected) that is what you have captured.

None the less, great photos of a really cool behavior.

ann

schmoo

Awais, didn't you just start experimenting with macros, like... last week?

I am duly impressed!

Lord Vetinari

Wonderful series Awais- you are getting too good at macro
As Ann says the babies are not ants possibly aphids or baby mealybugs- think that's what the bug is in #4- but just like aphids, the ants guard them , move them around and generally "farm" them for their excretions of honey dew.

brian v.

Awais Yaqub

Ann McRae wrote:

Great photos Awais.

I don't think those are ant offspring though. Ants lay eggs = larvae that then pupate and hatch as ants.

I think those are aphid nymphs. Ants actually 'farm' other insects. I think (but stand to be corrected) that is what you have captured.

None the less, great photos of a really cool behavior.

ann

Oh i am clueless are these not their kids ? they don't seems to eat them
What is aphid

Awais Yaqub

Thanks Schmoo and Brian i got it

DaddyO

Another nice set of interesting images. Cool shot of the ants interacting. Didn't know ants "farmed". Now I do. Plus I had to go out and do the read on aphids. Is school ever out? Michael

gus

Awais Yaqub wrote:

Oh i am clueless are these not their kids ? they don't seems to eat them
What is aphid

Great photos Awais...they are indeed mealy bugs. The ants do..as mentioned already ...farm them. The ants will tap the bug with their antenna to get the bug to secrete honey dew (a sugary substance) for the ants to collect and in turn the ants will provide protection for mealy bugs from predators. The ants will even move the bugs to a new location to start another farm.

Many ants farm...often they have 'fungus' farms under ground on stored vegetation.

Skippy

Awais Yaqub wrote:

As i am close to slavery (uni starts from monday) i am shooting my neighbours a lot. Yesterday i saw very small polan grains on flower and ants doing weird things on them As i am not shooting at full 12x because of low light i thought to look polan grain from near they were moving and actually they were new born kids of ants. here are images
here you can see one very difficult still at not full zoom
Here are elder bros finaly they have started to move and walk around
This is one wierd behaviour i am was trying to catch they transfer something mouth to mouth may be food for newly born ?

Hi there Awais, as the other have told you they are not baby ants
Ants are very good farmers, the food chain is quite remarkable when you see it in action and think about.

Though I think the Ants get the better part of the deal,
it's kind of like stand over tactics with them.

They help look after Aphids and other small creatures,
and in return these little creatures excrete a fluid that the ants drink.
You probably heard the term "Milking"

So there you have it, the Ants know how to Milk the system so to speak

Excellent images Awais
... Skippy
.

Awais Yaqub

Thanks all love to hear from you
great info !!

jerrykr

Great series Awais. You really have the skill for macros.

Awais Yaqub

jerrykr wrote:

Great series Awais. You really have the skill for macros.

Hi Jerry thanks for looking and loving

banjon

Very interesting shots. Great photos.
I learned something too - I heard of milking, but didn't know ants farmed insects.


Rich

Awais Yaqub

banjon wrote:

Very interesting shots. Great photos.
I learned something too - I heard of milking, but didn't know ants farmed insects.


Rich

Thanks Rich world is filled with amazing things