Tropical Storm Harvey: Fire ants join together to make living raft in floodwaters — and it could happen here

If you needed another reason not to enter floodwaters, this is a good one.

Fire ants survive flooding by combining and
linking together to become a floating life raft.

Fire ants inundated by Tropical Storm Harvey's floodwaters in Texas have latched together to form a living, floating life raft to survive.

And, according to one expert, it could happen in Australia too.

How do they float?

All insects have a water-repellent waxy layer over the surface of their exoskeleton, as well as water-repellent hairs on the surface of their body, said Jonathan Majer, adjunct professor at Curtin University and the University of Western Australia.

Professor Majer, who has studied ants for almost 50 years, said these hairs "trap" air on the surface of the insect, allowing them to float.

Read the ABC News story - “Tropical Storm Harvey: Fire ants join together to make living raft in floodwaters — and it could happen here.”