Here you will find intriguing extras: segments our producers weren't able to fit into a five-minute podcast as well as images, interesting facts and ways to get involved or in touch with biodiversity wherever you live.
Hear Dr. Wilson explain how he named a species that he discovered at the age of 17.
"Meet the Scientist" page to hear what E.O. Wilson loves about science. Images
Solenopsis invicta (Imported Red Fire Ant) and Paraponera clavata (Bullet Ant) from EOL species pages.
Dr. Wilson's Cabinet of Myrmecological Wonders
Visit Dr. Wilson’s cabinet of myrmecological wonders…this “retired” Harvard professor’s office, chock full of souvenirs from his long career studying ants.
Why I Do Science: E. O. Wilson
Here Wilson explains how a boyhood accident left him blind in one eye and forced him to focus on the “little things that rule the world”—ants. In describing his own path to a career as a biologist, he cautions there are many pathways to a life in science and our challenge is to help the next generation find their own ways. (2:00)
QUEST on KQED Public Media. Facts
Some scientists consider the imported fire ant the “fruit fly” or “lab rat”of ants. Eighty years of government-sponsored research aimed at controlling this invader have helped make it the most studied ant in the world.
Colonies of fire ants survive floods by joining their bodies into a living raft and taking advantage of their bodies’ property of repelling water.
Bullets ants usually nest at the base of trees, but sometimes a colony will form in humus mats, spongy masses of decomposing leaves and twigs, high in the rain forest canopy.
Which ant’s sting is more painful? According to entomologist Justin O. Schmidt, it’s no contest. He gives the bullet ant a rating of 4.0+ on the Schmidt Sting Pain Index, and describes the pain as “fire walking over flaming charcoal with a 3-inch rusty nail in your heel.” A fire ant rates a 1.2, like “walking across a shag carpet and reaching for the light switch.” Schmidt knows his insect stings. He estimates he’s been stung by 150 different kinds of ants, bees, and wasps.
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Journey to the Ants
Wilson shared a Pulitzer Prize for his encyclopedic account of ant societies, The Ants. His classic book introduction to ants for all ages, Journey to the Ants, coauthored with Bert Hölldobler, includes detailed advice for keeping and studying ants at home.
Lord of the Ants
Check out the classroom activities created to accompany the NOVA science video profile of Wilson, “Lord of the Ants.”