Post B5vvdjGQJLdJrYSNma by futurebird@sauropods.win
(DIR) More posts by futurebird@sauropods.win
(DIR) Post #B5vvDBaMu5Yxsl84Lg by futurebird@sauropods.win
2026-05-03T22:13:05Z
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So, let's consider the ants from Them. What would giant ants really be like?They would be incredibly hungry. During the summer an adult ant can eat half an fruit fly per day. Ant can simply stay still and use much less food, but if it's summer they'll want to increase their numbers and feed not just themselves but their larvae so they can raise more ants and have a nuptial flight to start more colonies. Adult ants can do rather well on sugars, but the young need protein. 1/
(DIR) Post #B5vvdjGQJLdJrYSNma by futurebird@sauropods.win
2026-05-03T22:17:53Z
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So cattle ranches and people would be targets in the summer, and sugar syrup producing places would be targets year round.The ants would also need a lot of fresh clean water and places to build nests. Honestly taking over the drain tunnels in LA made a lot of sense. Could such large ants dig underground nests? It might be difficult. People would be just the size of fruit flies. It's not looking good for us. 2/2
(DIR) Post #B5vvpc6ekSjV8gYUNc by futurebird@sauropods.win
2026-05-03T22:20:03Z
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I would like to submit that giant woodpeckers would be much more terrifying than giant ants. They can fly and would find pulling people out of building to eat very similar to searching for grubs. Really a giant ant eater in the real terror.
(DIR) Post #B5vw0gcGJzckJMcPsu by CStamp@mastodon.social
2026-05-03T22:22:00Z
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@futurebird I still remember fire ant bites. I’d rather dodge a big bird. :)
(DIR) Post #B5vwEtFM9rmBXRg3zk by futurebird@sauropods.win
2026-05-03T22:24:36Z
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@CStamp I think giant fire ants wouldn't bother using their stings on such small prey. The pain caused by fire ants is always their sting their mandibles are kind of tiny. (but the sting is meant to deter vertebrates, and they get excited very easily.)
(DIR) Post #B5vwMX9OCAe5KCWzVA by CStamp@mastodon.social
2026-05-03T22:25:57Z
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@futurebird Not just easily, they are extremely aggressive. And the pain and swelling last a long time. :(
(DIR) Post #B5w0ByyQoBR2FSd7Lc by count_01@mastodon.social
2026-05-03T23:08:52Z
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@futurebird One eyed, one horned, giant purple anteaters. Terrifying.
(DIR) Post #B5w0VdoJCce8P4GkJE by futurebird@sauropods.win
2026-05-03T23:12:27Z
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@count_01 I don't think "giant ----" tends to work out well in general. Perhaps this is the real lesson. Personally I think simply fox-sized ants would be more interesting. They wouldn't try to eat people unless desperate. We could learn to live with them.
(DIR) Post #B5w0cbhrQKAvuAZhEe by count_01@mastodon.social
2026-05-03T23:13:41Z
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@futurebird If anything, fox sized ants would have a lot to fear from people. There's quality protein in them chitinous packages.
(DIR) Post #B5w0h4RoVSvaCcCIBE by futurebird@sauropods.win
2026-05-03T23:14:30Z
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@count_01 "land lobster"
(DIR) Post #B5w29kRs2dT2WpSinY by michaelgemar@cosocial.ca
2026-05-03T23:30:53Z
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@futurebird I had understood that giant insects would collapse under their own weight.
(DIR) Post #B5w2KSEM7FC5DCFIv2 by futurebird@sauropods.win
2026-05-03T23:32:51Z
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@michaelgemar Well so would many vertebrates unless you redesigned their skeletons.
(DIR) Post #B5w2Z89X2y2dHkzIjw by michaelgemar@cosocial.ca
2026-05-03T23:35:28Z
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@futurebird That’s fair…
(DIR) Post #B5w2k1C1GQ6WswLJpY by leonardof@bertha.social
2026-05-03T23:37:19Z
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@futurebird I didn't know about the movie!
(DIR) Post #B5w4SRvXKOviUmNpoG by StephanMatthiesen@troet.cafe
2026-05-03T23:56:36Z
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@futurebird I watched "Them!" when I was about 7 or 8 years old. The German title is "Formicula", much more descriptive. It was shown late night on TV and I was allowed to stay up and watch it alone.I mainly remember that I thought the ants were moving unrealistically slow. When you scale the speed of real ants, the big ones should've moved like cars on a motorway and you couldn't outrun them.
(DIR) Post #B5w4aHOMNhAG8cbCZU by llewelly@sauropods.win
2026-05-03T23:58:08Z
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@futurebird the giant anteater is a real animal in S. America:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_anteaterbut, they really only eat ants. Sure, if you force one to defend itself, it can seriously injure a human, since they do have very large and very strong claws. But, that's on you.
(DIR) Post #B5wQpAWoNeBIBb3bN2 by DavidM_yeg@beige.party
2026-05-04T04:07:16Z
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@futurebird Now all I see in my mind’s eye is a 30ft woodpecker on the side of an apartment building, searching for the treats inside. If I don’t sleep tonight, I’m writing nasty messages to you! 😉
(DIR) Post #B5wz8K9oCWwhzebSbY by futurebird@sauropods.win
2026-05-04T10:31:45Z
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@llewelly A very elegant animal. The eat far more termites than ants by volume. I have mixed feelings about these obviously, but I love how unusual they are in shape. Why do they have such a flat body?
(DIR) Post #B5y0VxmTLFiOelU2fA by ollicle@mastodon.social
2026-05-04T22:21:53Z
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@futurebird but what if… cow sized *and* fox sized working together 😅