How Much Can Ants Lift?

Using complex mathematics, ants can lift a hefty mass. The best human weightlifters may only be able to lift a few hundred pounds, but leafcutter ants have been known to carry things more than a few thousand times their own weight. The average ant may weigh just two milligrams, but it’s a whole lot of lifting power.

Several researchers have studied ants, and many of them have been surprised at the strength of these tiny creatures. One entomologist in particular, Dan Crosfield, conducted extensive research on ants’ lifting ability.

The ant’s strength is due in part to its large surface area. Although ants are tiny, their muscles are much larger than those of larger mammals. They also have a complex neck and body structure that makes lifting heavy things possible. The neck is one of the most biomechanically sound joints in the animal kingdom.

In the laboratory, the ants were put through a variety of tests. A specially designed centrifuge was used to test the strength of various ant parts. This was achieved by spinning the disc at hundreds of rotations per minute. As the disc spun, the ants’ necks deformed and exerted more force on the ant bodies.

The micro-computed tomography of this experiment revealed a few tidbits about the ant’s neck. It has a complex soft tissue structure with microstructured bumps and folds, a feat of engineering. It may not be the strongest neck in the ant world, but it is one of the most biomechanically sound.