Chinese eat ants, mostly to get some kind of miraculous effect, and abroad, there is an ant that has been praised by Michelin restaurant chef Reylor Rezhedu, and Gordon Ramsay, known as the "hell chef".
In 2017, Reiler Rezhedo publicly stated in the media that this was the best thing he had eaten of the year:
"Sweet like honey, with a floral aroma, although slightly bitter, but this bitterness is very lovely!"
With the recommendations of the chefs, the ants, which were originally favored only by the local aborigines, stimulated the chefs' desire to create, and they have incorporated ants into their recipes. Because of its own sweetness, this ant is most used in desserts.
Ants and desserts, two unrelated objects, by what are they related?
A mouthful of honeypot ants, with a large belly like a grape, full of nectar
The mystery of everything lies in the belly of ants, which are called honeypot ants.
It was first discovered in 1881, when naturalist Henry Christopher McCook discovered a special group of small ants, with an upper body similar to that of ordinary ants, but with an abnormally swollen abdomen.
A few millimeters in size, with a belly as big as a grape, which stores the nectar they eat. Because it is too large, the skin of the abdomen has been stretched out and become very thin, and the color of the liquid in the ball can be clearly seen, and these colors have a lot to do with diet.
Dark brown, indicating that the food sugar content is relatively high, light brown, indicating high moisture content, some studies have shown that some honeypot ants are only used to store water;
Green-black, indicating that the collected food contains its own color;
White, indicating a high content of oil and protein, indicating that these ants also feed on some animal body fluids, such as other larvae;
The relatively rare color, which is layered up and down, indicates that the food contains both water-soluble food and fat.
Not all honeypot ants are of this size, only 20% of ants will specialize into a pot-bellied look, they are honey storage ants, the main role is "living grain warehouse".
Honeypot ants are mainly distributed in arid or semi-arid environments, which means that their food is very unstable, and in order to ensure that there is something to eat throughout the year, these small ants will become mobile food warehouses.
When the food is sufficient, the ants begin to stock up on food, and they feed the endless nectar to the honey storage ants one by one, and sometimes the honey storage ants will also go out to find food by themselves, and the food they eat will be stored in a cavity in the abdomen.
The more the storage ant eats, the belly gets bigger and bigger, and when it is completely swollen, it can no longer walk, and it hangs itself upside down on the ceiling of the nest.
When food is scarce, other ants rub the tentacles of the honey storage ants, and the liquid in the belly of the storage ants is fed to other ants through rumination.
In general, specialized honey storage ants exist to cope with arid environments. They hang from the ceiling like ornate lamps, ready to ruminate and feed when family members come knocking on the door.
Treat the eldest sister as a nectar pot, pampering, but also full of dangers
There are actually many species of honeypot ants, not specifically one ant, and they are distributed worldwide, including Australia, the Americas and Africa.
The honey storage ant that acts as a grain warehouse is actually a large worker ant.
As we all know, ants are social creatures, and different ants have different types of work. The queen and male ants are responsible for fertility, and worker ants are non-fertile females who are mainly responsible for the operation of all ant kingdoms. Some of these worker ants are relatively large, so these worker ants will be candidates for honey storage.
Their bellies do not grow larger every day, but slowly grow over time. From an early age, these ants are force-fed. When there is enough food, it may be the only time they are free, they can go out to find food, once the group feels threatened, ants begin to store food, then they also live a "pampered" life, only responsible for eating every day.
For ants, dedication to the family is the only criterion, compared to defending desperate ants, honey storage ants seem to have a more comfortable job, do nothing but eat, and live longer than other ants.
As one of the family's most important assets, there are also soldier ants to take care of, and the safety factor is second only to the queen and larvae.
However, the seemingly pampered life is actually full of dangers:
They can cause their stomachs to burst because they eat too much;
At this time, other ants only care about eating the leaked nectar, and they will not worry about or even rescue the honey storage ants that contribute to the family;
Their changes are irreversible;
The development of many ants is reversible, such as pseudo-honey ants, which become pot-bellied when needed and can return to their previous shape when they are not needed, but the specialization of honeypot ants is irreversible, which means that once it is suspended on the ceiling, it will never go out again.
They can be replaced at any time;
If a honey storage ant dies, or there is not enough food to store, then the larger of the worker ants will be added to replace it.
They will be hijacked by enemy forces;
Different ant populations inevitably have conflicts for resources. Wars will also break out between the honeypot ants of the two families, and at that time, the honey storage ants are an important resource for the two armies to compete for.
They will be dragged away by the enemy, but if they do not follow, they will unload eight pieces and carry them directly with their abdomen.
They are man's favorite food;
Australia's Aboriginal people have used honeypot ants as a source of nutrition for generations.
Digging for honeypot ants has always been a family tradition of local tribes. On weekends, the women in the family will go out together to dig honeypot ants, in order to ensure the integrity of honeypot ants, digging should be very careful, generally it takes several hours to dig into the nest of honey storage ants, because the time is relatively long, inevitably everyone has to chat, so the local family also regards digging honeypot ants as a family activity. In addition to eating delicious food, you can also connect with your family.
Locals will twist off the heads of honeypot ants and eat them directly, and the endless food will be used to make wine, which is also common in Mexico. They believe that honeypot ants have miraculous curative effects, can be used to treat colds and sore throats, and can be applied to disinfect wounds. Cooks also buy honeypot ants from local residents.
Some ant lovers have a soft spot for honeypot ants, offering food of different colors and then admiring the crystal clear, colorful belly of the honeypot ant.
With human affection, life for honey storage ants may be more difficult.