The Ants Come Marching
by Marjorie J. Toal
Take a look at the following statements and determine whether they are true or false.
a. Ants can lift twenty times their own body weight. [T]
b. Some ants sleep seven hours a day. [T]
c. Ants lived alongside dinosaurs. [T]
d. Ants cannot smell so they cannot follow scent trails. [F]
e. Ants don't have lungs, but they have ears and can hear. [F]
MAKING CONNECTIONS
Quick Answers
1. Answer the following in not more than one sentence.
a. Why is Benjamin Franklin well-known?
= Benjamin Franklin is a well-known scientist, inventor, printer, writer and one of the important early leaders of America.
b. What were the ants doing on the kitchen shelf?
= The ants were crawling all over on the kitchen shelf.
c. How did the ant discover the way out of the jar?
= The ant zigged and zagged the jar and eventually found the string and discovered the way to get out of the jar.
d. How does the language that ants use differ from ours?
= We use verbal and audible language but the ants use chemical language.
e. What do we call the chemicals that are secreted by the ants?
= We call the chemicals pheromones that are secreted by the ants.
f. Where do the ants store what they collect?
= The ants store what they collect in the pouch or crop inside their mouth.
Reference to context
2. "Before long, there were two lines of ants on the string..."
a. What were the two lines of ants doing?
= One line was trampling down to get the sweet syrup, and the other line was parading upward carrying globs of molasses in their crops.
b. What had brought about the movement in these two lines?
= A jar of molasses on the shelf of the kitchen of Franklin had brought about the movement in these two lines.
c. What did this prove to Franklin who was conducting the experiment?
= This proved to Franklin who was conducting the experiment that the first ant had communicated with her nest mates to come and grab the food.
3. "Today, after many observations and experiments, scientists have found answers to some of these questions."
a. What were the scientists trying to find out?
= The scientists were trying to find out how do the ants communicate.
b. What conclusion did they arrive at?
= They arrived at the conclusion that ants may not be able to speak but they can use their antennae to smell and taste. They have special glands in their bodies that produce a variety of odour signals, called pheromones.
c. What does it tell it about ants?
= It tells about ants that using one of these signals, a scout ant can leave an invisible trail of odour for other ants to follow.
4. "And when ants 'sniff' a scent trail, they receive a message."
a. What messages do the ants get?
= The ants get messages like 'Come get food!', 'Prepare for battle! Alien ants on the way!' etc.
b. What do they use to sniff?
= They use their antennae to sniff.
c. Is the scent trail visible?
= No, the scent trail is not visible.
5. "Inside the nest, the scout performs a dance for her sisters..."
a. Who are the scout and the sisters?
= The scout is the first ant who gets the news of food or the alien ant. The sisters are the other ants who are her nest mates.
b. Why does the scout perform a dance?
= The scout performs a dance to gather and prepare her nest mates to be ready for the food or to attack the alien ants.
c. What does performing a dance signify?
= Performing a dance signifies that they are set to start their mission for food or attack their enemy.
Read, reflect and write
6. Do you agree that although humans have excellent verbal communication skills, ants have a more harmonious interaction with each other? Give at least two examples to prove your point.
= Yes, I agree that although humans have excellent verbal communication skills, ants have a more harmonious interaction with each other. Firstly, the ant inside the jar zigged and zagged the jar and eventually found the string. Then it marched up fast and crossed the ceiling and went to its nest. After about 30 minutes, an army of soldiers came to rescue the food.
Secondly, there were two lines of ants on the string, one line was trampling down to get the sweet syrup, and the other line parading upward carrying home globs of molasses in their crops.
7. The author refers to the movement of a large number of ants as marching. Explain why.
= The author refers to the movement of a large number of ants as marching because he has shown the ants as going to some mission. As the soldiers march before going to the battle field having passion and and zeal. The ants also set out with harmony to achieve food or to defeat the alien ants.
8. List at least two other animals that use smell or scent to communicate. What are the different purposes for which animals use pheromones? Is smell the only means of communicating among animals? What else do they use?
= Other animals that use smell or scent to communicate are bees, wasps, moths etc.
The different purposes for which animals use pheromones are - to communicate with their mates, to identify their nest mates, to declare war against their enemies etc.
Smell is not the only means of communicating among animals. They can beckon, make small gestures to communicate.
9. Read about Benjamin Franklin and write about another discovery that he is famous for.
= Another discovery that Benjamin Franklin made is lightning rod. It protects a structure from lightning damage by intercepting flashes and guiding their current into the ground. In a lightning protection, a lightning rod is a single component of the system. The lightning rod requires a connection to earth to perform its action.
10. Extended writing: Ants are known for their hard work and team spirit. Look up more information about ants and describe how they demonstrate this. Briefly write about one instance where you worked as a team.
= Ants are known for their hard work and team spirit. According to Hindu mythology, ants got blessings that they would not get tired untill they complete their task. Ants go into a semi-hibernation mood in winter as they can not move in the decreasing temperature. they need to gather food before winter. They work in team and harmony to do the same.
In July this year, our school has organised tree plantation week. We were made groups and given certain targets to plant certain number of plants in our locality. I worked as a team and planted many trees in the locality. It was a great fun and happiness to work in groups. It was to protect our nature and environment. It gave me immense satisfaction.