Simulating an Ant Colony for 1000 Days

So over the first few days,
she creates a nest. And if we look underground,
her first generation is underway. But in the world above,
they will have to face competition and rival colonies. Their journey has only just begun. She will never leave the safety of her nest. So she creates workers to serve and protect
her. But the enemy has already arrived. A wild ant on the hunt for new territory. This wild colony lives on my windowsill. Oh my God. The workers act quickly. They are beginning to build a wall. They will stop at nothing to protect their
queen. And pretty soon their entrance is sealed. But war is coming. And if they want to
survive, they will need an army. And for that, they need food. They specialize in collecting seeds. Their job is to transport them underground
where they store them in a bakery. Here they ground and crush the seeds into
bread and bread. It is the perfect food for their growing
larvae. And 70 days later, the results are clear. There was a population boom,
all powered by their tiny bakery. But the new workers are weak and clumsy. They need sugars like honey,
yet the honey stayed untouched for days until it was discovered by a wild ant. Thankfully she’s alone. Or so I thought. They launched an attack. This is nothing compared to the war. Yet the colony is overrun. But I tried to save as many of our ants as I
could. But it was already too late. What? The damage had already been done. I spent hours removing the enemy one by one
by one. Most of the colony did not survive. And those that did are badly injured. But ants are one of the few animals that
respect their dead. So the remaining few build a graveyard. It is almost unbelievable. They may have lost the battle,
but will they win the war? The colony is weaker than ever,
but they still need honey to survive. Last time it caused a disaster. This time they act with caution and begin to
feed. You can even see their tongue as they drink
up the honey. But then something remarkable happens. They are covering the honey in dirt and
debris. It is genius. They are hiding it from the
wild colony. Protecting the honey means protecting their
queen. She is the only one in the nest who can lay
eggs. If she dies, the rest of the colony is
doomed. But with her survival,
the colony thrives. By day 600, the colony had become a fortress. But it is time to put their defenses to the
test. Here are 100 fruit flies. They are small, annoying,
and a lot like my mother in law. They scatter. The ants begin to panic while
many of the flies stand still. If they don’t move, then they may remain
unseen. But this one makes a run for it. And so does that one and that one and that
one. But this one was not as lucky. He is the first kill of many. Even though they caught most of the flies. A few managed to escape,
but the escaped flies were not as safe as they thought. Out of the frying pan and into
the fire. The wild colony. Their numbers have grown so
large they’ve spread far beyond my windowsill and overtaken my animal room. My pets aren’t a fan of their new roommate. It seems our colony is not as prepared as I
thought. So over the next year,
our colony became an empire. But the wild colony acted in parallel. Both of them are fully preparing for war. But this one escaped into my kitchen. I didn’t know why until I returned. There was an all out war. And the enemy had already made their way
underground. They have to save the Queen. So she is brought to the deepest part of the
colony. The rest of the nest had been abandoned,
and the remaining workers swarm the queen. But a worker was left behind,
fighting to break free. But the enemy wanted more. The larva. One by one,
they begin to die. A thousand days led up to this. The queen began alone to create an empire. But would they let it fall to save their
queen? Our colony turns not to flee,
but to fight. They begin to rally to their queen. Even my pets joined the fight. They breach the surface and the enemy was on
the run. They were winning and pretty soon they had
won. The wild colony was never to be seen again.