I’ve squashed many ants in my life and do you know what I’ve never seen? Ant blood.
Have you?
So I started wondering what the heck is going on inside those tiny bodies. Turns out the answer is stranger than you might think…
Ants don’t have any blood, at least not like we do.
Instead of blood, ants are filled with something called hemolymph. This is a thick, yellowish goo that sloshes around inside them, doing some of the jobs that blood does for us, like carrying nutrients around the body and removing waste.
But hemolymph isn’t just blood on a budget—it’s a different setup altogether.
Unlike us, ants don’t need hemolymph to carry oxygen because they breathe in an entirely different way.
Ants “breathe” through tiny holes along their bodies called spiracles. These little airways let oxygen seep directly into their tissues so there’s no need for a circulatory system like ours.
Ants don’t have veins, or arteries, or even a heart as we know it.
Instead, they rely on a long, tube-like structure that sort of pumps the hemolymph around. This pump doesn’t create a closed loop like our heart does with blood; instead, hemolymph just floats freely within their bodies, bringing nutrients where needed.
Each part of their body has easy access to oxygen, so there’s no need for red blood cells or hemoglobin, which is what gives our blood its distinctive red color. Hemolymph doesn’t need to be red because it’s just not carrying oxygen in the first place.
Now, you might be wondering—what happens to the goo when an ant gets squished?
You already know there’s no dramatic spurt of red or even yellowish fluid.
This is because ants are armored with a hard exoskeleton that holds everything in place. And if this skeleton does get cracked, the ant’s hemolymph has an amazing ability to clot almost instantly, sealing off any leaks.
Think of it as an auto-patch system that activates whenever ants get injured. Which is why ants can keep moving and working even when they’re hurt – and why no fluid comes out of a squashed ant.
The hemolymph simply clots as soon as the ant gets crushed so there’s no liquid to come out!
Turns out ants simply don’t need our complex, high-maintenance blood system because they’re small, tough, and definitely built for survival (at least until I see them running across my kitchen counters).
Ever wondered what happens to them in the cold winter months? Find out HERE.
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