Everybody has seen ants in their surroundings. They are known for their hard work and unity. But have you ever noticed that when we accidentally crush an ant the blood coming out of it is not red? So, does this mean that there is no blood in an ant’s body? Let’s find out if ants have blood. There is no direct answer to the question but ants have something similar to blood, a fluid that is yellowish or greenish known as hemolymph. The main work of blood in vertebrates (animals with backbones) is to move important things like nutrients from food, wastes, and oxygen around the body.
In short, blood brings oxygen and nutrients to all the parts of the body to make it work properly. The reason behind blood being red is because it consists of lots of tiny red blood cells which carry oxygen around the body.
On the other hand, ants and other insects have haemolymph inside their body, which does some of the same jobs as blood like helping in moving nutrients around. The number of amino acids in them is very high.
The circulatory system of ants and other insects is similar to that of a human. The work of blood in insects is different from the human body. Like in humans, blood flows only in the veins and arteries, but in insects’ bodies, the fluid is free to move in any direction. It does not move in any kind of artery but freely circulates throughout the body. Because of this, ants can live easily even in very difficult weather. Hemolymph also helps in healing their wounds. Hemocyanin is present inside the hemolymph just like red blood cells contain haemoglobin.
However, an important difference to note between hemolymph and blood is that hemolymph does not carry oxygen around the insects’ body, they breathe through little holes on the side of their bodies known as spiracles, which brings oxygen directly to the insect’s organs without red blood cells.
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