The Incredible Lives of Ants | Attenborough: Life in the Undergrowth | BBC Earth

Ants live almost everywhere. The water falling in this mangrove swamp in Australia exposes in the wet mud an ant's nest. Every time the tide recedes, the ants must repair any damage the water may have caused. Collapsed entrances must be reopened and blocked tunnels cleared. Now that the mudflats are exposed, the ants hurry to collect what food the tide might have delivered. But there are still some stretches of water to be crossed. The surface tension of the water supports them as they dance across it. Sometimes they actually swim. And there has indeed been a new delivery of food. But the tide has also created a problem. It has washed away the chemical trails that mark the frontiers of their territory, so there's now no clear boundary between them and ants belonging to a neighbouring colony. The interrogation of a stranger is complex and detailed. Who are you? Where do you come from? Answers are readily given and accepted. But every now and then they have to fight to settle the question. They may have sorted out their disagreement, but now there is a bigger threat to both of them. The tide is turning again. They must get back to the safety of their nests. While the tide has been out, larvae and pupae have been moved around the nest to keep them at the temperature needed for their proper development. Now they must be moved again, for the nest is not watertight. Many of the tunnels and chambers are flooded with every tide. There's no time to waste. But the water doesn't reach every part of the nest, for the ants have constructed bell-shaped chambers that trap pockets of air and so create refuges where the adults and the young can sit out the high tide.