Ant Behavioral Science Project

This ant behavioral science project is meant to give you ideas on how to perform experiments and arrange your project. Use this project to come up with ideas for your own experiments.

Ant Behavioral Science Project - Ants and Different Types of Sugar

The purpose of this ant behavioral science project is to determine which kinds of sugar ants prefer.

Background:

Research information on ants. Answer the following questions: What types of food do ants eat? Where do they typically live? How long do ants live? Can ants be harmful to people? Do ants help the environment?

Hypothesis:

From your research you should have an idea of what ants eat. From this you will predict which kinds of sugar ants prefer (table sugar, honey, molasses, or maple syrup).

Materials: (Adult supervision of kids is always recommended.)

• Suggested ant habitat kit: Kit includes mail-in coupon for ants.

       

       Science Kit: GeoSafari AntZone - ages 6 and up

• Table sugar
  
  
• Beaker - (100ml or more)
  
  
• Small Measuring Cups
  
  
• Graduated Cylinders
  
  
• Balance
  
  
• Spoon
  
  
• Distilled water (grocery store)
  
  
• Five small containers
  
  

Procedure:

1. Gather materials needed for your experiment. You must mail in your coupon before you can receive the ants for your kit. Make a note of the species of ants you have when they arrive.

2. Follow instructions and safety precautions for setting up your ant habitat. Parental guidance is suggested.

3. Label each of the 5 small containers with one of the following: water, table sugar, honey, molasses, or maple syrup.

4. Add 100 ml of distilled water to your beaker.

5. Using a balance, measure 30 grams of sugar.

6. Add the sugar to the distilled water in the beaker and stir with a spoon until dissolved.

7. Use the method described in the Sugar Concentration and Ants experiment to determine the concentration of sugar your ants prefer. Pour that concentration of sugar solution into your container labeled table sugar.

8. Dilute your honey, molasses, and maple syrup 3-fold by doing the following:

• Pour 10ml of honey into a small measuring cup. Add 20ml of distilled water and mix thoroughly with a spoon or stirring rod.

9. Pour some of the honey into the container labeled honey.

10. Repeat step 8 to dilute the molasses and maple syrup by substituting molasses or maple syrup for the honey. Pour some of each solution into its pre-labeled container.

• Be sure to clean and dry the measuring cup or use new ones when diluting the honey, molasses, and maple syrup. You don't want to mix the different substances.

11. Pour some of the distilled water into your container labeled water.

12. Place the containers (table sugar, honey, molasses, maple syrup, and water) inside your ant habitat. Be sure to spread them apart.

13. Observe the ants hourly and record the number of ants around each container during every hour.

Record Observations

Type of Sugar	Number of Ants Per Hour
	1 hour	2 hours	3 hours	4 hours	5 hours
% Table Sugar
Honey
Molasses
Maple Syrup
Water

Results:

Record your data and compare your results. Describe what you observed in your ant behavioral science project experiment. Which type of sugar did the ants like most/least? Why? Graph and chart your data.

Conclusion:

Summarize what happened in your ant behavior science project experiment based on your results. Explain patterns in your data. Did your data support your hypothesis? If not, explain why. Evaluate your project and make suggestions for improvements.

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