Feb 25
Uncharismatic Fact of the Day
Not all heroes wear capes! Quicksilver ants are named for their remarkable ability to beat the extreme heat of the Saharan desert. Workers have a thin coat of special silver hairs which can reflect sunlight and radiate excess heat away from their bodies. They also spend as little time outside the nest as possible, which means they travel fast; individuals have been clocked at moving 108 times their body length in a second, reaching speeds of up to 3.1 kph (1.9 mph). That makes it the fastest known species of ant!
(Image: A quicksilver ant (Cataglyphis bombycina) by Norman Nan Shi)