男友太凶猛1v1高h,大地资源在线资源免费观看 ,人妻少妇精品视频二区,极度sm残忍bdsm变态

More than a mere interest in insects

A researcher's unique outlook has enabled him to explore the world of bugs from a new perspective and share their 'superpowers' with the rest of us, Wang Ru reports.

By Wang Ru | CHINA DAILY | Updated: 2024-02-19 07:45
Share
Share - WeChat
Leaf-cutter ants that impressed Chen when he visited the Amazon rainforest. CHINA DAILY

Amazon ants

One impressive insect variety he observed in the tropical, biodiverse area were leaf-cutter ants, a species that shows impressive cooperation and farming abilities.

He explains that the ants tear leaves into small, easily movable pieces and carry them back to their colonies to fertilize mushrooms that they, in turn, eat.

Chen spent three days observing one nest in the Amazon several years ago and was amazed by their close coordination.

He observed that the ants are divided into different groups that are respectively responsible for cutting leaves, transporting harvested pieces, clearing obstacles out of the way, guarding the colony, taking care of the young and planting mushrooms.

"Several million ants can live in one nest, but their activities are very orderly," says Chen.

To ensure the freshness of the harvested foliage, leaf-cutter ants often find the shortest routes from the source to their nests. When they move leaves from different places to their nests, it seems in some ways similar to human logistical systems, Chen says.

He points out that ants planted mushrooms tens of millions of years before humans did, creating one of the oldest agricultural systems on the planet.

And Chen also points out that leaf-cutter ants are not the only species to possess "magical" abilities. All insects have such "superpowers", he says.

"Half of the world's living beings are insects," says Chen.

"Humans only have an evolutionary history of 6 million years, but insects have been around several hundred million years, which means they experienced competition for incredibly long periods but haven't been eliminated.

"Insects were the earliest creatures that could fly and feed themselves by farming. They have survived three mass extinctions. No other living things can claim such great achievements."

He hopes that people will learn and take inspiration from insect "superpowers" and apply it to their own lives.

"If we humans believe we are the smartest beings in the world, we may be constrained by this preconception. If we are instead humble and regard all other beings as our teachers, we can gain boundless wisdom," Chen says.

"We should actually see ourselves as equals with other species and believe this is a great world."

This belief has also led Chen to upload over 350 videos about animals, which have gained over 350,000 followers on the short-video platform, Douyin.

He has also taken youngsters to observe insects in the wild.

"Actually, insects are the best playmates for young people. For example, we get them to think about how mosquitoes can stand upside down on the ceiling and why humans can't," Chen says.

"They discover the charm of nature and scientific knowledge from such observations, and find new curiosity about this world."

Beijing primary school student Wang Ruocan participated in a camp Chen organized in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region in 2021.

"It was a marvelous journey during which I learned a lot of new things about insects," she says.

|<< Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 Next   >>|

Related Stories

Top
BACK TO THE TOP
English
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

Registration Number: 130349
FOLLOW US
主站蜘蛛池模板: 邵阳县| 江西省| 新泰市| 昔阳县| 古交市| 衡阳县| 疏勒县| 元阳县| 肃南| 松溪县| 措勤县| 兴化市| 平舆县| 施甸县| 玉田县| 射阳县| 龙山县| 镇安县| 石嘴山市| 孙吴县| 舞钢市| 宜兰市| 法库县| 农安县| 宁海县| 栖霞市| 肥城市| 突泉县| 丰镇市| 沁源县| 大港区| 长子县| 凤翔县| 梁河县| 丰顺县| 新野县| 崇义县| 新昌县| 广西| 白银市| 绿春县|