Ant followers and driver ants

Ant followers and driver ants

We are delighted that Dirk Vianden has taken over the sponsorship of the ant followers and driver ants (Alethe poliocephala, Bleda syndactyla and Dorylus spec.).

It is often described as one of the most fascinating phenomena in the rainforest: Representatives of a wide variety of bird species follow driver ants (Dorylus sp.), which maraud through the rainforest in colonies of millions of individuals and flush out everything that crawls on the ground: Grasshoppers and other insects, arachnids and earthworms - all members of the leaf litter community are either overwhelmed by the ants or take flight - A feast for the ant-following birds that congregate on the fronts of the driver ant raids. They literally only need to hold up their beaks to pick off the fleeing prey.

As part of a research project in an East African rainforest region, scientists at Museum Koenig were able to observe over 50 different bird species participating in the predatory behaviour of driver ants. In the new rainforest exhibition, this fascinating phenomenon will be presented with moving images and original specimens.

Sponsorship has been taken on for a whole arrangement of around 200 driver ants (Dorylus spec.) and the "ant followers" brown-breasted alethe (Alethe poliocephala) and red-tailed bleda (Bleda syndactyla).