Working as hard as ants

Employees are known to be any businesses greatest asset and giving them an environment that they are comfortable, happy and proud to be working in is incredibly important. This is why Office fit out companies have become popular. They are aware of the importance of good surroundings on productivity and morale as well as being able to design spaces that are fit for purpose and give off the personality and nature of your business. Ants by nature are very similar to humans in their work ethic in that worker ants spend their time collecting items of food and building materials to bring back to the nest for the queen and other high-profile ants. Their world is incredibly sophisticated and there are many parallels that can be drawn between their world and lives and ours.

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Here are some interesting facts about ants, see if you can draw any comparisons with humans!

• Farming capabilities – much like we raise cattle and sheep and a variety of other animals, ants are also farmers of a sort. They farm different, very small insects to supply them with items that they need. For example, they will utilise aphids to give them honeydew and in return they protect the aphids from the elements such as rain and also from their natural predators. It is a wonderful beneficial relationship for both insects.

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• Super strength – we spend hours and hours at the gym or working out at home in order to build up our strength, muscles and stamina, but ants have natural super strength. You won’t find them in their nest lifting tiny dumbbells! Studies have indicated that ants can carry around 50 times their body weight which is an incredible amount. This of course varies depending on the species of ant with some being able to carry 10 time their body weight and the Asian weaver ant being able to carry an amazing 100 times its own body weight.
• Two stomachs – despite their tiny size ants actually have two stomachs. They use one of these to hold the food that they consume for themselves, much like our stomachs, but they then have a second stomach which carries food that they then share with other ants. The process of trophallaxis means that they are highly efficient creatures with ants foraging for food carrying items back to the nest for those whose job entails tending to the queen and so are unable to leave the nest to find their own sustenance.

There are many more incredible facts about ants, and you can find some here.