AntU
AntU is an endeavor designed to involve a variety of academic disciplines to engage a broad audience in the wonders of the complex biological systems of army ants and their hundreds of associated species (“guests").
(NSF)(EEB) (CSMNH) Carl W. and Marian E. Rettenmeyer Army Ant Guest Collection.
Multiple departments and schools across UConn campuses will be participating in AntU over the four year life of the grant, each challenged with exploring the idea “Learning from the Miniature Societies of Army Ants.” Their efforts will be guided by three overarching themes: (1) the role of the real, (2) complexity, and (3) informing human culture.
Stay tuned—let’s see what Army Ants and their Guests have to teach us!
For Academic Partnerships contact Janine Caira (EEB).
For Public Programming contact Leanne Harty (CSMNH).
Learning from the Complex Society of Army Ants & Their Guests
07/28/2017 • UConn Today | AntU: Astonishing Army Ants
06/27/2017 • Hartford Courant | Bug Out with UConn Extension
04/28/2017 • UConn Today | Army Ants March into New Exhibit
04/23/2016 • UConn Today | Extensive Army Ant Display To Go On Parade.pdf
04/23/2016 • Hartford Courant | UConn To Display Work Of Biologist Who Collected 2M Insects.pdf
04/22/2016 • Daily Campus | UConn Biologists to Revive Army Ant Collection.pdf
04/18/2016 • WSHU News Story+Audio | At UConn, Millions Of Army Ants Represent A Lifetime’s Work.pdf
04/16/2016 • US News | UConn to display work of biologist who collected 2M insects.pdf
04/13/2016 • WNPR News | UConn Receives Grant to Exhibit Collection of Two Million Ants.pdf
04/13/2016 • New Haven Regster | UConn Gets $500K Ant Grant.pdf
04/13/2016 • Business Insider AP | UConn receives grant to exhibit collection of 2 million ants.pdf
03/24/2016 • Audio WILI | Wayne Norman Show.mp3
On the Web
Rettenmeyer Army Ant Guest Collection, EEB Biodiversity Research Collections
http://biodiversity.uconn.edu/ant-guests/
Rettenmeyer Astonishing Army Ant and Army Ant Guest videos
http://biodiversity.uconn.edu/rettenmeyer-videos/
Antweb
Antwiki
http://www.antwiki.org/wiki/Welcome_to_AntWiki
Ant photography
Paper: Ant Workers Exhibit Specialization and Memory During Raft Formation
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00114-016-1360-5
Suggested by David Grant, UConn School of Pharmacy
Books
Gotwald, W.H., Jr. 1995. Army Ants: the biology of social predation: 302 pp. Ithaca, N.Y.
Hölldobler, B. and Wilson, E.O. (1990) The Ants. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts
Exhibition
Army Ants & Their Guests: Works Inspired by the
Carl & Marian Ant Guest Collection
Thursday, October 17, 2019 - February 9, 2020
Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry
1 Royce Circle, Suite 101B, Storrs, CT
In collaboration with AntU, the Ballard Institute will open the new exhibition "Army Ants and their Guests: Works Inspired by the Carl and Marian Rettenmeyer Collection" at the Ballard Museum on October 17, 2019, 6:30 - 8:00 pm. The exhibit will feature ant and insect puppets from Rufus and Margo Rose, toy theaters created by participants in the October 5-6 BIMP workshop, and an array of new works by puppeteers from around the world, including Sirikarn Bunjongtad, Sarah Frechette, Honey Goodenough, Dirk Joseph, Stephen Kaplin, Monica Leo, Tarish Pipkins, Poncili Creacion, and Miss Pussycat.
The Ballard Museum is open Tuesday through Sunday, 11am - 7pm. Admission is by donation.
For more information on the exhibition or group tours, visit https://bimp.uconn.edu, or email bimp@uconn.edu
Special Event
The Colony Premiere at UConn
Friday, September 6 at 8 pm
Saturday, September 7 at 8 pm
Sunday, September 8 at 2 pm
Studio Theatre, Music/Drama Building, UConn Storrs campus
Reserve FREE tickets at www.thecolony.show
Join us for the premiere of Anna Lindemann’s newest work, The Colony, an art-science performance about sisterhood and the evolution of communication in two of the most social creatures on earth: humans and ants. Animator, composer, and performer Anna Lindemann portrays the loving, bookish, and stubborn Mona as she struggles to reconnect with her estranged relatives, performed by soprano Lucy Fitz Gibbon and pianist Ryan MacEvoy McCullough. Co-written by Lindemann and Emma Komlos-Hrobsky and directed by Michael Hofmann, The Colony ventures into speculative fiction and includes projected animations and imagery alongside live spoken and musical performance, all informed by scientific research on ant colonies.
A unique and ambitious AntU initiative, The Colony draws visual materials and research in part from
the Rettenmeyer Army Ant Guest Collection at UConn.
Tickets are free, but seating is limited and reservations are encouraged. Visit www.thecolony.show for tickets, directions and more information, and follow @thecolonyshow on Instagram.
Special All-Ages Event
Bug Week - AntU Day
Thursday, July 25, Noon-4 pm
Biology/Physics Building, Lobby Level, UConn Storrs campus
Map: https//maps.uconn.edu/m/map/BPB
No registration required – FREE
Bring your own bugs, and join us at the UConn Biology/Physics building for the third annual AntU Day! The event begins at noon with a special screening of the film The Love Bugs, with Charlie and Lois O’Brien and their remarkable collection of over one million specimens. Following the film, you can learn how to identify insects with Jane O’Donnell and take our insect identification challenge! Until 4pm, you can also tour the Biodiversity Research Collections and EEB Greenhouses, learn about silk moths and cocoons, and check out the microscope stations and live fungus-growing ant colony! AntU Day has something for everyone—with fun new giveaways, Dairy Bar ice cream, and hands-on learning for all ages. Download a printable AntU Day flyer and/or preview The Love Bugs film trailer.
Groups are encouraged to attend, with bus parking available! Email antuinfo@uconn.edu for more information, or visit the Army Ant Guest AntU Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UConnArmyAntGuests
UConn Extension Bug Week is a College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources event.
Visit https://bugs.uconn.edu/ for the full week of programs.
Exhibition
Be Our Guest
The Complex Society of Army Ants and Their Guests
Located in the lobby of the Biology/Physics Building on the UConn Storrs campus.
Hours: 8:30am to 4:30pm, Monday through Friday.
For parking information visit: http://park.uconn.edu/guest-visitor-parking/
Come visit our giant 12' army ant and see if you can find all the guests located on it. Learn about the biology of Eciton burchellii, and how hundreds of species of guests interact with army ant colonies to create a fascinating and complex biological system.
Exhibition
The Literature of Army Ants & Their Guests
Located in the Lobby Rotunda of the Wilbur Cross Building on the UConn Storrs campus.
Hours: 8:30am to 4:30pm, Monday through Friday.
For parking information visit: http://park.uconn.edu/guest-visitor-parking/
This new AntU installation showcases student poetry inspired by the biology of army ants and their guests. Included are works from Bruce Cohen’s creative writing classes (ENGL 3003W, ENGL 3701) and from the Educational Center for the Arts in New Haven, as well as in Darcie Dennigan’s Nature Writing Workshop (ENGL 3715). If you feel inspired, create your own poem on the 50-foot interactive poetry board!