Page 122 - The Miracle in the Ant

Treasure of Ants

All the activities of ant colonies centre on the queen and her eggs. The
ants hold their queens, who ensure the reproduction of their colonies, in
high regard. All their needs are met by worker ants. The most important
thing a worker ant does is to serve the queen and ensure her survival and
her babies.
Ant eggs are the most valuable treasure of the colony. The first thing the
ants do when they sense any danger to their larvae is to take the babies to
a secure place. Yet, since baby ants die within a couple of hours of coming
into contact with the dry air outside, worker ants try to keep the air humid
in the sections where the larvae are. There are various techniques they have
developed for this. First of all, they build their nests in such a way as to keep
the humidity of the air and of the soil at appropriate levels. In addition, ants
who assume the task of being caretakers of the babies, move the immature
ants up and down in the structure. They try to find the most suitable envi-
ronment for them. Furthermore, the needs of baby ants vary according to
age. For instance, while eggs and larvae need a humid environment, the ants
in the pupa phase have to be in a strictly dry medium. Workers keep on
working for 24 hours without rest to complete these tasks. 80
The worker ants in the colony have dedicated themselves to raising the
eggs of their constantly laying queen instead of laying eggs themselves. They
take many risks on this score, because the humid medium required for eggs
and larvae is ideal for the growth of bacteria and fungi that are potential
health hazards for the ants.
Then, how are the workers protected in such an unhealthy environment?
Allah, Who has created ants with their magnificent systems, has given them
another defence technique. The metapleural glands in the thorax of adult
ants continuously secrete substances that kill bacteria and fungi. Therefore,
ant colonies are rarely struck by bacterial or fungal infections. 81

Can Darwinism Explain Sacrifice?
Charles Darwin, who is the originator of the theory of evolution, has sug-
gested that the basic motivation of the process of evolution was that of stay-
ing alive. In Darwin’s view, when individuals of a species acquire traits that
increase their chances for survival, those individuals have an advantage; due
to this advantage, they survive and produce relatively more living offspring,

Kar›nca Mucizesi
122 THE MIRACLE IN THE ANT