Farmers, warriors, builders: the hidden life of ants.

• Position: Entomology - Brief article

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Small, yet abundant, with complex and wildly diverse lifestyles, ants are everywhere, although oftentimes hidden from view. What if people could see into their world--on their level? What could be learned? What parallels could be drawn between them and humans? Now, with the aid of a macro tens and the insights of ant specialist and photographer Mark Moffett, the Smithsonian Institution presents the world of ants through its Traveling Exhibition Service and National Museum of Natural History.

Moffett's macro photographs in "Farmers, Warriors, Builders: The Hidden Life of Ants" tell stories about the lives of ants--hunting, communicating, dealing with disease and agriculture--and chronicle the work of entomologists in the field. The exhibition features large-scale photographs, a three-dimensional aluminum cast of an ant nest, and touchable oversized ant models. Visitors can explore the model of a leaf-cutter worker that has been blown up to 50 times its actual size and learn how it uses its body to work and survive in the colony.

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"What fascinated me most in preparing this exhibit is...