Participate

Construct the arena shown in the diagrams below.

To do the experiment

1. Place ants in the nest area.
2. Remove barrier 1 and allow ants to explore the available area for 5-10 min.
3. Remove barrier 2 and allow ants to explore the larger area for the same amount of time.
4. Use video or photographs at about 15-30 sec intervals to record the ants searching behavior.

The data

Using the video or photographs, count the number of ants in each grid square.

The results

These data will show how thoroughly the ants searched the area, and whether their searching behavior changed when a larger area to explore became available.

Resources

Instructional video

Lesson Plan from the Center To Support Excellence in Teaching (CSET), Stanford Graduate School of Education

Other material

Guides and other material from Baylor College of Medicine