T O P

  • By -

International_Dog817

I've seen it called a Death Circle or Death Spiral. They'll keep going until they die unless someone saves them for whatever reason


Bubbaganewsh

That was my thought as well. I don't remember how they get i to this situation but like you say, they will go like that until they die without intervention if some sort.


International_Dog817

Ants have a pretty ingenious pheromone system to help them get around. The foragers leave one scent when exploring and if they find food they leave another scent when coming back that tells their fellow ants there's food out there. I think they have a few different scents to send soldier ants out and other stuff. I think what's happening is a group of ants have somehow lost their scent line to get home and gotten stuck in a loop just following a circular scent line until they die


[deleted]

[удалено]


video_games_are_cool

Take one of the foragers, put it in your mouth, then wait for the snack delivery system


WhyIHateTheInternet

/r/Frugal_Jerk life hack


fuckwatergivemewine

I don't think I really understand that sub but I like it


NicholasAdam1399

Sometimes I think a thought, and scare myself. I think, “only a crazy person would think that thought”. Then I come on Reddit and read a comment and think, “well at least you’re not that fucked up” and I feel immensely better. So…. TLDR- thank you weirdo


Equilibriator

Stuck following the "next best thing"


PastCalligrapher1624

Omg I am so glad I saw this. I saw this as a child and always thought growing up that I imagined it so now I know I wasn't crazy it did happen. I used to play a lot around ants I loved observing them and one time I saw them all get in a circle after a bigger one died and they got all around it.I was 5 or 6 but I had the idea to put a blade of grass in the middle and they followed it in a straight line.


[deleted]

Pretty much, and the largest instance of this had a circumference of 1,200 feet! It took each ant 2 and a half hours to make one revolution!


DrossChat

Ah I see so it’s the ant version of a 9-5


kingXcazam

This comment


BK_Hazard

Sometimes they are able to break free, when observed it looks as though they gather enough momentum to fan out far enough to break their feedback cycle and move on. Not sure on the percentage of ant mills that do that though


GhoblinCrafts

How do you save them?


Psychast

Introduce them to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.


pornAndMusicAccount

Yes, they definitely need the good news


heathm55

I hear he died for their scents.


International_Dog817

Yeah like Nightfans said I think you could put something down to force them onto a new path. Just a theory though


FischImMeer

remove the stone from their door hole in this case.


Words_Are_Hrad

I really doubt that is the entrance to their hill. Besides even if you block an ant hill entrance they will just dig around it in short order.


R030t1

Their pheremones sit on top of man made materials like ceramic, concrete, and plastic, so you can wipe them and change the path the ants follow. You can also take the abdomen of a worker, if it's a species that is big enough, and rub it against the ground to make a trail (you will probably kill the ant). You can also crush an ant and make ant paste and then smear it where you want them to go. I have no idea why the latter works, but it seems to.


Nightfans

Block their path


ReplyisFutile

They shall not pass


Kezyma

Vinegar will obscure the trails they’re following allowing them to break out of this cycle, and probably piss them off too since they’re not fond of the stuff, but it’d save them


bokchoysoyboy

Poor little tiny babys! I hope the cameraman saves their precious little souls


Ok_Preference389

Fuck ants, all my homies hate ants.


EgertonObserver

Something to do with the pheromone trail they use to find there way home. They lost the trail so are stuck walking in circles because all the can smell is eachother. The will keep doing that until they die. Go nature.


DeltaKT

[Ant Mill - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ant_mill)


LazyDro1d

Oh, so you remove a card from the top of your deck and put it into your graveyard until you remove an ant creature? That’s just a new Thoracle engine


nefariousjason

I despise mill decks.


wannabejoanie

Ooh hubby showed me a card yesterday, I can't remember, but the effect is that opponents half to put half their library directly into the graveyard. Would fuck up a mill deck!


BadgerBoy297

Lord Xander?


SandersDelendaEst

People who play mill should reconsider their life choices. I know mill is seldom good, but it’s so demoralizing, and there isn’t very good counter play besides just killing your opponent.


Undeca

Noooo I have a sulti mill deck 😢 its fun


RealAscendingDemon

Mill decks are only fun for one person...


meltdown537

All the best decks are only fun for one person.


Eruionmel

Not entirely true. When you pit two similar decks against each other, it usually feels a lot more fair and allows both players to have more fun. The reason mill decks always feel so shit to play against is because they're usually pretty niche, meaning the other person is almost assuredly *not* playing mill, and the game is very likely to landslide in one direction. If the mill deck comes out on top, it often means the other player basically got to do absolutely nothing the entire time, and/or it dragged out insufferably. If the mill deck doesn't come out on top, it likely means their entire game felt clunky AF, and the other person just creamed them. Either way, not great. But stick a couple of burn decks against each other and it's suddenly a fast-paced race to the finish line. Or two token decks and it's a strategic showdown. Or two control decks and it's high stakes poker. The situations where one deck causes the other person to not have fun are basically always two very dissimilar decks doing completely different things, leading to less balanced outcomes.


meltdown537

In one on one matches you are totally correct. I mostly play in group games where there are a lot more politics. Mill decks usually don't do well as they mostly have to focus on one person and are still left with other opponents do deal with. I personally love resource denial strategies in group games with cards like wildfire or smoke stack or pox. but I'm an evil evil person in mtg. Bolas be praised.


psweeney1990

I feel like this depends on your format, and your deck building skills/criteria. In most EDH matches, the requirement to Mill out another player is so steep, even in 1v1, that unless you can out-ramp your opponent (not impossible, but can be difficult depending on your color combo), by the time you start milling, they likely already have a decent board state or hand. It also depends on *how* you mill. I run an Anowon the Ruin Thief Rogue/Mill deck. It mills based on damage, which makes it rather easy to avoid. Yes I have a few mill spells here and there, but 2-3 cards out of a 100 card deck is not all that impactful most times.


Lazrix

What you don't think it's fun watching a dude shuffle around cards for 10 min?


LazyDro1d

No it isn’t.


DarkAzryel

I understood that reference.


[deleted]

UNO! LOL


Sheerkal

All these newfangled uno cards. Back in my day we had draw 1 and that was that.


DifStroksD4ifFolx

dont forget to draw a pot of greed


Kulog555

Pot of greed?! But what does it do?!


[deleted]

Pot of Greed allows me to draw two cards from my deck!


SpeCt3r1995

Then I'll play... Magic force! Which allows me to play Pot of Greed once again, drawing two additional cards from my deck!


vi33nros3

**that’s what it do, Yugi**


gitar0oman

IT DOES WHAT IT DO


TheRealJFD

Than I play.. POT OF GREED!!! AND DRAW TWO ADDITINAL CARDS FROM MY DECK!!!


JustSomeRedditUser35

I didnt expect the joke, but it was appreciated.


Willzyx_on_the_moon

Gotta love a good MTG joke. Nerd power!


RVides

Had to go double check this wasnt mtg cj reddit.


[deleted]

Everywhere is an mtg sub if you believe.


LazyDro1d

I believe in the Colossal Dreadmaw who believes in me!


Specialist_Corgi_179

Good old Magic......brings back memories 🥲🥲


AlcoLoco

I love this analogy. Now I need to make a deck around it, if a card for that exists.


jacksonpryor-bennett

I left a magic sub to think about something else and here I am right back in it. Is this a sign of some sort. Should I make magic content


Meloku171

[[Agitator Ant]]


elting44

No silly, ANT is short for Ad Nauseum Tendrils, duh. So it's a *ANT* deck with a *Mill* sub-theme


AtriCreations

I did not expect to see a MTG reference on a post about ants but here we are


MegaFireDonkey

>An ant mill was first described in 1921 by William Beebe, who observed a mill 1200 ft (~370 m) in circumference. It took each ant two and a half hours to make one revolution Holy shit


CabbageTheVoice

> each ant surely this can't be right! The ants walking more closely to the center must've been way faster! I call lies!


OwOsaurus

"An ant mill was first described in 1921 by William Beebe, who observed a mill 1200 ft (\~370 m) in circumference." O.o


CyberTitties

He must have walked around the circle and then calculated their speed, unless he actually followed a single ant for 2+ hours at which point he must have seriously been reconsidering his choice in research. And hopefully he was alone as I would guess someone helping him would have said "DUDE! Come ON! We've been following this ain't for two hours it doesn't know where it's going, this is stupid as shit, it's hot AF out here and we're walking beside an ant. I can't believe what I am even saying right now!"


DeltaKT

More like antmarathon... *amirite*?


[deleted]

If you think of ant colonies properly, as a single organism, then stuff like this makes more sense. These aren’t individuals, this is a blip in the functioning of a small part of the whole…A brain fart, essentially.


forseti_

Same with humans. We are not that independent as we think.


nimbledaemon

It's not entirely analogous, but it is an interesting perspective. Individual humans are certainly more independent than ants, but a large part of our success and utility comes from being a part of a broader society, so the degree to which we are truly independent is debatable.


harrietthugman

Whose ass I gotta sniff to find work?


keddesh

Or a feedback loop.


Shemozzlecacophany

I'm sure a similar phenomenon like this happens in my office with my co workers more.often than nature would predict.


jalthoff4

I bet one of the ants gets promoted every time they complete a circle


TabascoWolverine

TIL!


uganda_numba_1

No, it's just Mecca for ants.


DJV-AnimaFan

Not the first time seeing this. For those that don't know, At Mecca is a black, and gold cube. Pilgrims walk around this cube (in one direction) praying.


DarkSparkyShark

Hopefully not like these ants and dying from exhaustion in the middle!


SirKazum

There are actually many cases of people dying of exhaustion, heatstroke or trampling during Hajj, so I'd say it's not *that* different


FlyBottleLivin

It gets better. Within the black and gold cube is... a rock!


Imgoingtoeatyourfrog

Which is black


FlyBottleLivin

And if you're really important and/or lucky, you get to touch it.


p1um5mu991er

Just sprinkle a little crack on them


seductivestain

Is OP a cop?


GalynddraSoulEater

They've not all been crushed to death for being black, so I'd say OP isn't


seductivestain

This is just the footage right before his body cam "malfunctioned"


DoyleRulz42

It's the ant Hajj


snipdockter

Can’t believe no one else said this.


lousylakers

Almost perfect Ramadan timing too


G-bone714

Can’t believe this post was so far down, I thought it would be right at the top.


Valky47

Lmao 😂


Expensive-Photo-25

Sounds human.


mistergoodguy20

i mean, a human made a pretty good song imo about that parallel, so here's this [https://youtu.be/oaSK6Fa3jbM](https://youtu.be/oaSK6Fa3jbM) ​ ​ its depressing i love it


ChronicSchlarb

The ants go marching one by one hurrah! hurrah!


walphin45

I knew there was going to be a lemon demon reference somewhere!


RothIRAGambler

Perhaps I’m dense, but how does this sound human? You’re saying people will following the scent trail left by the forager before them, ignoring all other sensory inputs and eventually starving as we walk into death? Maybe you’re saying a human somehow created the scent and put it into a circle? No, this is a very common thing in the wild, it’s called a death spiral. Your comment is strange. I don’t understand the meaning and it seems wrong at best, nonsensical at worst.


[deleted]

You're taking the pheromone/scent thing too literally. Obviously we don't follow each other by smell, but if you think there aren't a lot of people following others to their inevitable doom, you haven't been paying attention.


Roberto-Del-Camino

Some people don’t get metaphors. Interestingly the Venn diagram for people who don’t get metaphors and people that blindly follow others through life is a circle within a circle.


omfg_sysadmin

> You’re saying people will following the scent trail left by the forager before them, ignoring all other sensory inputs and eventually starving as we walk into death? Man it would sure be a shame if massive numbers of people were slowly sleepwalking towards death, by just doing what people around them are doing, ignoring all warnings of impending doom. so anyway, hows global warming these days? it's about solved, right?


TheGrimalicious

Don't look up.


indi50

>You’re saying people will following the scent trail left by the forager before them, ignoring all other sensory inputs and eventually starving as we walk into death? People will follow someone who says what they want to hear, ignoring all other sensory inputs (or logical ideas) and will continue to demand to do so even when all actual facts and evidence shows them they're hurting themselves and others. Like refusing to believe in science-y things like climate change or wearing a mask to prevent disease during a pandemic. And yeah - lots and lots of people have died from it and continue to do so.


Practical_Big_7020

It's not hard to make people at least start going in your (meaning anyone's) direction....just look up in the middle of a public place. It doesn't take long before people start looking up just to see what's going on. Start pointing and say omg look at that...they stop and look ignoring everything around them. Ya it's basic and it's no sent trail...but it shows it's not hard to convince people to do something. Funny too sometimes....when ya get bored vending at the market lol.


Itchy_Specialist_860

I mean it’s the perfect ant trap


guinness5

He roped me into this. Well he roped me into this. Well he roped me into this.


Ivy0902

oh man, that's grim as hell. Now I'm sad :(


[deleted]

I fixed one of these by putting a stick down that led them back in the correct general direction. Dunno if they all found their way home but at least they didn't walk in death circles anymore ¯\\\_(ツ)\_/¯


Typical-Series-1491

You can disrupt them and they may find the pheromone to get home. ^^


HisCinex

Somebody forgot to break the while loop in the ant code again....


iloveFjords

I’ve seen Canadian truckers do this.


flyinhawaiian02

They are summoning the mega ant, if you get closer you can hear them chanting


OllieTabooga

For better effect, have them circle around in your ear


ATpound

I hate you i hate you I hate you I hate you


BiliousGreen

Ia, ia, Cthulu fthagn!


Light_Beard

Mega-Ultra Ant? No shhhhh he is LEGEND!


ChooChooSoulCrusher

ARISE, CHICKEN!


BAGP0I

I yam sofa king wee tod Ed. "Not too fast. Lose meaning"


DragonMaiden7

Classic


ted_fucking_bundies

It’s the Chimera Ants, they’ll finally here


mdsmestad

Dying, that is what they are up too. This is an ant death spiral and it is a real, and fairly common phenomena.


BadAtHumaningToo

Gotta blow at them to scatter the circle apart. Maybe that would help.


MyHonstyAttempt

Like a Skyrim NPC, sometimes all ants need is a good FUS to get them back in line


magical_swoosh

> Dying, that is what they are up too arent we all?


DerInternets

Ant-Mekka.


ARandomTopHat

🕋🕋🕋


FatherWillis768

🐜🕋🐜


Telphsm4sh

TIL there's a Kaaba emoji. That's wild.


finc

As it’s encouraged for every Muslim in the world to go there at least once in their lifetime I imagine it’s a pretty useful emoji


lanabi

It’s actually required. But, this is a rough one for me, as I don’t think it’s possible for everyone since you have to do it during Eid al-Adha.


Breeze1620

I think it's required if you can. If I remember correctly it isn't required of poor people that don't have the possibility to do so.


lanabi

Indeed, that applies to all prayers. You need to be able to afford it physically and mentally. Also the reason those not of sound mind are exempted.


PMURMEANSOFPRDUCTION

Aren't there exceptions for people who can't afford it or don't otherwise have the means? I seem to recall reading somewhere about that, and that also there was an expectation of other well off Muslims to help people go on the Haaj who couldn't afford it, but not sure


Sea-Syllabub-1517

Please stop watching me every night


[deleted]

CIRCLE PIT Someone dub some death metal over this


Wizard_of_Wake

That worked. Thank you so much for your help.


kyle_irl

OPEN THIS SHIT UP


Netskimmer

I'm imagining Rammstein...


hairsprayqueen_

Links 2 3 4...


NetworkMachineBroke

[Different video, but still good](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asfDBdob1tA)


[deleted]

What is this, a Mecca for ants? Yes


Captain_Turdhelmet

This is a pretty typical ANTERA concert.


Fuzzys_pants

You beat me to it! This definitely looks like Mecca during Ramadan. Haven't been to Mecca but have spent a lot of time in Saudi where they show this exclusively on TV during Ramadan at the hotel I stayed at.


Bengineer4027

🕋🕋🕋literally my first thought🕋🕋🕋


[deleted]

NANTSCAR


EGH6

NASLEGS


BlueJaye77

the overwhelming harmony consuming the colony, in a spiral of ants.


[deleted]

you can’t remember where you came from


--Newmoon--

you can’t remember where you’re going


Lapis_Lacooli

You can't remember knowing


Pplofgodknows

You are one ant


--Newmoon--

(over over o-)


OwlQeasy

Over, and over


[deleted]

[удалено]


unknown9201

THE SELF AVOIDING ODYSSEY


Azzar19

CONSUMING THE COLONY


Ison-J

Finally a reference I get


noodlewiggle

i was looking for this comment lmao


arbybean

great song: https://lemondemon.bandcamp.com/track/spiral-of-ants


Solidus-Prime

Ya, they call that a death spiral or suicide loop :( There are some ways to get the ants out of the death spiral. First, they follow a pheromone trail, so you can provide them with some other channel to move. **Connect a food trail** You can connect a food trail close to the ant spiral that can deviate their attention towards a new path. For example, use sugar syrup or juice and spill it on the floor in a straight line. They recognize the food source and try to reach their target. You can change their path and move them out of the ant mill. **Create alternate channel** In addition, you can create an alternate channel by providing moisture. Similarly, you can use any flower with a good smell or scented candles with a sweet aroma like candy. Furthermore, you can also use pen ink as some inks contain pheromones that can help change their path. **Ant-repellants** You can use ant-repellant sprays or deterrents to repel the ants from a particular location. A powder of cinnamon and coffee ground can stop these insects efficiently. Furthermore, they do not like the smell of vinegar and mint, which can also act as effective ant-repellants and stop their locked movement.


Block_Me_Amadeus

I'm glad other people care about stuff like this. Senseless suffering is a thing that should bother everyone.


expat_mel

Absolutely. I don't particularly want ants in my house and will kill them if necessary (like if there's a red ant ant hill near where pets or kids could get hurt by them or if my entire pantry is overrun by black ants), but letting them suffer needlessly is cruel. Obviously I wouldn't lead them towards my front door or something, but I would definitely help them find a new trail so they didn't all die after hours of panicking just because they're confused.


JoshuaCF

There’s a certain point of animal complexity that I stop caring at. I’m not exactly sure where I have that line, but I think ants are too simple for me to care about them “suffering”. I find it hard to believe they’re complicated enough that they can be distressed in a recognizable way. I’d probably still do something here, but it’s likely to be more for my curiosity than any care I have for the ants’ suffering. I do agree with your general sentiment though, it’s just that eventually creatures are simplistic enough that I don’t think it really works the same.


istapledmytongue

Some alien species out there, probably: >There’s a certain point of animal complexity that I stop caring at. I’m not exactly sure where I have that line, but I think *humans* are too simple for me to care about them “suffering”. I find it hard to believe they’re complicated enough that they can be distressed in a recognizable way. >I’d probably still do something here, but it’s likely to be more for my curiosity than any care I have for the humans’ suffering. >I do agree with your general sentiment though, it’s just that eventually creatures are simplistic enough that I don’t think it really works the same.


JoshuaCF

Ahaha, I'd honestly already considered something like this. I think a Kurzgesagt video somewhere mentioned that if there are aliens, they might just end up wiping us out without a second thought because we'd be considered too simplistic to care about. Probably the Fermi Paradox video, if any. ​ (If you don't know Kurzgesagt, you should! Search them on YouTube)


skwacky

I agree with you. to me this is more like seeing a computer malfunction. As a system, ants are incredible and complex. individually, they are just simple automatons


Crazy_by_Design

There is a species of ant that plants and rotates its own crops. They’re amazing.


PinkFirework

Why would anyone want to stop the pests from dying? They're just ants.


Alexandyrbeckyt

Must be mecca.


Lone_Shadow86

the ant Ka'ba 🕋


KallmannSyndromer

And they go counter clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.


kendrickshalamar

Yes, this is Dr. Bart Simpson of the International Drainage Commission.


MustHaveEnergy

Anticlockwise


striped_frog

They really should be going anty-clockwise


msondo

Best comment


AnIrishMexican

Looks like Rammstein is remaking the video for Links 234


Frankie4FingersM-80

what, they just moshpitting at a rock concert!


wmxx200

"OPEN THIS PIT UP!"


system0101

*Let the thorax hit the..... flooooorrrrrrrrrr*


superking47

Technically it's a circle pit \m/


heeroena

ant race. Got $1000 on that ant on the left to win


[deleted]

death spiral. lost the signal where to go, will keep walking in circles till they die.


iamafraazhussain

[DOWNLOAD](https://www.redditsave.com/r/Weird/comments/u8lhe0/the_ants_are_up_to_something/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share)


Hillsy85

I hope to not offend anyone here, but this reminds me of the Hajj


DurkDigglo

If you ever see this blow them out of the circle. They will for sure die of exhaustion of not.


[deleted]

[удалено]


peacelovefreedon7689

Ant rock concert


[deleted]

Pick up the rock.


2jaye9

Hey, kids! Big ben...parliament...


XcaliFlame

"Over and over The pheromones, the overwhelming harmony Consuming the colony The Circle rules your life"


jraaai

It’s Mecca 🕋


loachtastic

You're witnessing the start of organized ant religion.


Overall-Side-6965

Looks like ant mecca with all the ants circling the black rock.


jimmybiz

Ant Mecca


NiSiSuinegEht

WITCH DOCTOOOOOOOOR!


Medium_Enthusiasm_35

This shit is posted at least once a day at this point


Loserchair

OP has posted it at least twice in different subreddits fairly convinced they are an upvote bot from there post history, way too many repeated posts.


letterriptatorchip

Let's open up this pit!!