Up
and over ... Leafcutter ants not only carry pieces of leaves that
weigh many times more than they do, but they practically do acrobatics while
they lug their loads. Imagine a runner having to run a marathon, not on a
paved road - but over an obstacle course, while carrying three thousand
pounds worth of weights over her head. That's sort of what leafcutter ants
do--only when the race is over they do it again--and again and again and
again. But individual accomplishments mean nothing in ant society. It's
only through teamwork that leafcutters transport tons and tons of leaf pieces--15%
of the forest's foliage, scientists estimate--from the canopy to their underground
homes. Now those are remarkable accomplishments!