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Wednesday, June 24, 2015

Teeny Tiny Ants

Ants rule. There are so many types of ants around here in Sanur - or anywhere. One type that really puzzles me are these teeny tiny ones I see mainly on the porch if a drop of something sweet has fallen. Many will be right at the sweet spot but others will be running around. What gets me about them is the speed they move. If it was us it might be like 150 miles an hour. And why are most of them running around in imperfect circles? What could be accomplished by that? Anyway, I leave them alone.
The only ones I don't want to see are your standard reds that bite. They are not a problem but they're around. One was on my laptop here in the living room and I ran outside with it to blow it off fearing a major assault driving us away but there's been no followup. Another thing that gets me when removing them from my arm or computer or whatever. I'll blow as hard as I can and often it's not hard enough. What super abilities they have. Back to the tiny ones. I searched for a bit and couldn't find anything definitive on them. Almost everything is how to kill them. Shame. 

Found the following comments on the Practical Machinist

We have had teeny tiny ants around our kitchen sink...smallest ants I've ever seen. From what I can find online they are either Thief or Pharoah ants.

I'm curious as to whether these little ants smell like "ant" when crushed. I dropped a coke bottle in some bushes at work and when I recovered it later I set it on my desk. Next thing I knew these little ant looking things were all over the place. But they didn't smell like an ant when crushed. We tried taking a digital picture of one to zoom in on it, but they move waaay to fast for that.


Remember - that wasn't me, DC. Back to me now. I know what ants smell like from working in trees especially on the Tassajara phone line. If I started climbing a tree and smelled ants, I'd get down immediately and pass on it. 

Started to read more about tiny teeny ants then realized. I've got a lot to do. There are infinite beings to save and a whole biosphere at risk - for a lot of us anyway it seems. But first had to get the ants out of my head so Katrinka and I went for a walk and - well here's a photo of a Komodo Ant we came across frightening two tourists. Thank goodness they're harmless - the tourists that is.