Ants are geniuses. They discovered agriculture before humans, and can hold one another to form a raft. The fun part: they can do all of these with no lungs!
Instead, they breathe through tiny tubes called “tracheae.” These tubes are spread throughout their bodies and are a vital part of their respiratory system. Here’s how it works:
When we humans breathe, our lungs fill up with air, and oxygen is taken into our bloodstream. Our blood then carries this oxygen to every cell in our bodies. Ants, on the other hand, have a different approach. Instead of a central organ like lungs, their tracheal system carries air to a moist wall of tissue, through which oxygen is directly taken up by the cells.
Imagine a sponge filled with tiny tunnels. When you squeeze it, air goes out, and when you release it, air comes in. An ant’s body works somewhat similarly. These tracheae open to the outside through tiny holes called “spiracles.” These spiracles can be found along the sides of an ant’s body. They allow the ant to take in oxygen and release carbon dioxide. The spiracles can open and close, so ants can control how much air enters and leaves their bodies.
Now, let’s sprinkle in some numbers to make this clearer. A human, on average, takes about 12 to 20 breaths per minute. While it’s tricky to equate this directly to ants since they don’t “breathe” in the same way, it’s interesting to note that ants can close their spiracles to avoid losing too much water. This is super important in hot or dry environments. Some desert ants can survive with their spiracles closed for long periods, even over 24 hours, to save water!
Another cool fact is about the size of these spiracles. They are tiny, often less than 0.1 millimeters in diameter. That’s about 500 times thinner than a pencil eraser! Yet, these minuscule spiracles are enough for ants to get all the oxygen they need. On the other hand, the tracheal system works fine only in insects that are a centimeter or two in length, anything larger needs to move their abdominal muscles to breathe.
While ants don’t have lungs like we do, they have a sophisticated system of tracheae and spiracles that allows them to “breathe.” Yet they have lived for ages, and found ways to survive the most complicated scenarios in nature.
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