The Tiny Teacher

The ant is the commonest, smallest but wisest insect. People have kept ants as pets and watched them closely, so we know many facts about this hard-working creature.

Though flies and mosquitoes come to mind, the ant is the wisest insect. Its life story sounds almost untrue, yet observers who kept ants as pets have recorded their daily behaviour in detail.

Ants use feelers or antennae to pass messages. Watch a row on a wall - each greets ants from the opposite direction by touching feelers.

An ant 'talks' to others through its feelers or antennae. On a wall, moving ants greet every ant coming the other way by touching antennae - a constant exchange of messages.

Black or red ants live in comfortable anthills with hundreds of rooms. Queens lay eggs; nurseries hold grubs; workers search for food; soldiers guard barracks. Each ant does its work peacefully.

Common black or red ants live in nests or anthills with hundreds of little rooms and passages. Some rooms hold the queen's eggs; others are nurseries for grubs. Workers have quarters and gather food into storehouses. Soldiers live in separate barracks. No ant harms a grub, and the colony lives peacefully.

The queen lives about fifteen years. After a summer 'wedding' flight she bites off her wings and lays eggs. Soldiers guard grubs; workers feed and carry them for sunshine until they become cocoons and then full ants.

The queen ant is mother of the whole colony and lives about fifteen years. After a hot-day wedding flight with a drone, she returns, casts off her wings, and lays eggs. Grubs hatch; soldiers guard them while workers feed, clean and carry them daily for airing. In two or three weeks grubs become cocoons, then perfect ants.

New ants learn duties from old ants - as workers, soldiers, builders or cleaners. After a few weeks' training they join the world of work.

Teaching follows hatching. New ants learn their roles from older ants - as workers, soldiers, builders, cleaners and more. After weeks of training the young ants are ready for the big world of work.

Anthills also shelter beetles, lesser ants and greenfly. Some smell pleasant; some give sweet juice; greenfly are 'cows' the ants milk for honeydew with a touch of antennae.

An anthill is home not only to ants but also to beetles, lesser breeds of ants and greenfly. Ants tolerate these 'aliens' for pleasant smells, sweet juices, or companionship. The greenfly is the ant's cow - trained to give honeydew when touched, just as humans milk cattle.

Humans may have learned as much as ants but not used it well. We can still learn hard work, duty, discipline, cleanliness, care for the young, and loyalty to our land.

Have humans learned as much as ants? Perhaps - but not put learning to good use. From this tiny teacher we may still learn hard work, sense of duty and discipline, cleanliness, care for the young, and above all firm loyalty to the land where we live.