Stands with leaf-cutting ants occupy a place of honor in zoos of world capitals and always attract the attention of visitors. One of the main tasks in designing and creating such stands is to create the longest and most spectacular route from the point of placement of food (leaves) to the nest. It is the mass movement of ants carrying pieces of leaves many times larger than themselves that attracts spectators. In our stand, 1.5 meters wide, we managed to make a route with a total length of about 3 meters, running along the soil, hanging ropes, tree branches, so that the friendly work of the ants can be observed and photographed from a variety of angles.

 

In addition to the spectacular natural filling of the interior space, the stand is equipped with fascinating light effects and can operate in three light modes: natural light, ultraviolet illumination and residual glow in the dark. This function significantly enhances the overall effect of spectacle and attracts additional attention of visitors.

 

The stand is populated by a large colony of leaf-cutting ants of the Atta cephalotes species, brought from Trinidad, grown and adapted by us for exhibition purposes in St. Petersburg.

 

This stand is currently the only operating stand of this format in Russia and will become a real news item if installed in any zoo, insectarium, as well as the lobby of any public institution or shopping and entertainment center. It was already presented to the public at the XI International Ecology Forum, in the pavilion of the Expoforum exhibition association, in October 2020 and aroused genuine interest among both forum participants and guests of the event.