Small and mighty, ants are interesting creatures that work together in a hive-like mindset to care for and protect their colony. These colonies can consist of over 400,000 ants. Because ants are so small, however, it can be difficult to determine what body parts they have.
Do ants have eyes?
Yes, ants do have eyes. Most species of ants have two compound eyes, which are large and consist of various eye facets (or smaller eyes) that detect shadows and lights. Even though they have eyes, ants typically rely more on their senses and the info they pick up with their antennas and legs.
Like humans, the actual quality of their eyesight varies from one species of ant to the next. Most ants have rather blurry eyesight, but some species are completely blind. To make things even more difficult, there are even some ant species that have extremely good eyesight.
Are ants blind?
Most species of ants are not blind, though they do see differently than what our human eyes can see. With that said, however, there are some subterranean species that are completely blind.
For example, Dorylus ants, also known as safari ants or driver ants, are completely blind army ants that are native to East and Central Africa. They typically feed on earthworms and, like other ants, use pheromones to communicate.
Do ants have ears and are they deaf?
Ants may not have ears, but that doesn’t mean they’re deaf. When foraging for food, they use sensors in their feet and their knees to sense vibrations in the ground to hear prey.
These vibrations can also alert them to potential danger. So, while they do hear even without ears, they do so in a completely different way than humans do.
Can ants see?
Although most ants can see, they typically don’t have the greatest eyesight, especially when you compare it to other insects. They can see movement and the area around them, but cannot see very far in front of them.
The bulldog ant, however, which is native to Australia, has amazing vision. They can tell the size and distance of moving objects from up to a meter away from them.
