Amazin' Amazon Mystery Animals

Mystery Animal #3 - Answer: Leafcutter Ants


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!
 
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