Have you ever had a hoard of ants try to devour your picnic? Want to watch the spectacle behind plexiglass? Well, Brooklyn artist Elizabeth Demaray is about to make your dreams come true. For a month at Exit Art on 10th Avenue, Demaray has been feeding 500 Pogonomyrmex badius ants nothing but McDonald's happy meals, toys and all, for her “Corpor Esurit, or we all deserve a break today" exhibit. But entomologists are puzzled by, of all things, her choice of ants.
“They might enjoy the sesame seeds on the buns, but that would be about it," said Dr. Colin S. Brent. The Florida harvester ants are seed harvesters, and don't often impose on humans for their food. And somebody get PETA on the case, because apparently many of the ants seemed confused without the presence of a queen and brood, and a lot of them were dead, presumably from a lack of natural diet options. The surviving ants have adapted by eating the meat out of chicken nuggets.
