Why art, of course.
Brooklyn-based artist Elizabeth Demaray’s exhibit — “Corpor Esurit, or we all deserve a break today” — at Exit Art in Manhattan takes a look at what happens when ants are given burgers, shakes and Chicken McNuggets in place of their regular diet (mostly seeds in the case of the ants used in the artwork) for one month, The New York Times reported.
The artist’s goal is to “stage a commentary on the effects of the American diet on the creatures that depend on us for food,” the paper reported. She worked with Dr. Christine Johnson, a scientific assistant and ant researcher at the American Museum of Natural History.
While Demaray’s art is open to interpretation, scientists wonder at her choice of ant — the red harvester ant Pogonomyrmex badius. “Ants of the genus Pogonomyrmex are desert seed harvesters known for their deep nests and toxic venom, not the kind of ants that intrude on a picnic,” according to the article.
“My first response as a scientist would be bafflement as to why Pogonomyrmex was chosen,” Dr. Colin S. Brent, a research entomologist with the USDA, told the Times. “They might enjoy the sesame seeds on the buns, but that would be about it.”
Palentologist and entomologist Dr. Michael S. Engel, co-author of of the book “Evolution of the Insects,” also questioned the choice of ant species. “If I had to toss in a particular group of ants into an enclosure to see how well they were going to thrive off of junk food, I’d throw in generalist carnivores and omnivores like army ants,” he said.
The “Pogos” — short for Pogonomyrmex among the ant research set — are picky eaters, mostly dining on grain and occasionally nibbling on dead insects, said the paper.
In the exhibit last week, many of the ants had expired, the Times reported. However, those that remained seemed to take a liking to the apple slices and chicken nuggets, which had been “excavated of meat.”
