I ordered these ants expecting to bolster my already impressive ant farm…a full 12'x9’ wall of glass and a real focal point in my apartment. As an avid myrmecologist, I have successfully gotten multiple species to live and work in harmony over the years. Carpenter Ants, Fire Ants, Argentines, even the normally aggressive Army Ants. All of them serving the greater good, thriving. Even a layman could tell you the next logical step for growing the community was obviously red Harvesters.
About half of the ants were alive and well when they arrived, the rest, not so much. I added the whole tube into the colony as I’ve found the communal mourning process helps to create an almost fraternal bond when integrating a new breed. All of my experience, all of my research, everything I thought I thought I knew about ant culture could not prepare me for what happened next. The ones that had appeared deceased had just been in some sort of catatonic state, and before long, possibly due to the nutritious nature of the soil or possibly due to some unholy sort of necromancy, they began to stir, to rise.
Initially, the whole colony appeared to celebrate. It seemed to be a momentous occasion, but as I excitedly jotted down notes in my journal…or ANThology if you will ;)…the risen quickly began turning on their brethren. They were noticeably more aggressive, biting at the heads of others, yet for some reason I’ve not yet accounted for, slower. They began to cannibalize the other ants, but this was not your run of the mill larval consumption for purposes of population control. It was chaos and panic all throughout. Frantic migrations and glass tappings in an effort to escape. As the initial dozen or so feasted, more and more ants began to take on these characteristics…this, hunger.
It was the Army Ants that first learned to fight back. They quickly learned that by severing the nodes that attach the abdomen to the thorax, the mutation is nullified. However, there also seems to be a crucial moment of vulnerability, when going in for a “kill cut”, wherein the infected ant has a very real opportunity to sink his mandibles into the brain of his attacker, thereby converting him.
Often times it appears ants are unable or incapable of performing the kill cut, they freeze up when they recognize an attacker as a former mother, brother, lover. And in that moment of hesitation, all is lost. The “biters” do not hesitate. Families and friends have been separated from one another, cut off as crucial supply lines and travel routes become more densely occupied with the infected. Independent “clans” of survivors appear to be developing. Stockpiling food, forming barricades, and constantly looking for higher ground have become their highest priorities.
Sadly, a very palpable sense of mistrust has developed within the farm overall. Morale among the ants is at an all time low, but this form of interaction has never before been witnessed in the scientific community. From that standpoint, it has been an absolute thrill to watch the events unfold as they have.
To further research and understanding in the matter, I plan to remove a handful of the biters to see if I can isolate the mutated gene, and potentially develop a cure to help the farm flourish once again. Will update this review once successful
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