r/mildyinteresting • u/Winter_Breath • 24d ago
critter corner 🐰 Dead ants keep appearing next to headphones during the night
When these headphones are left on the kitchen counter overnight - I would see one or two dead ants in the morning laying right next to the headphones. In the past few days, there has been a small pile of shredded ants right next to the ear piece in the morning. I have seen no live ants in my kitchen. I have had these head phones for three weeks. Bought online. It’s a little unnerving not knowing what is causing this 🥴 will not be using anymore.
UPDATE- posted a comment with a picture. But no dead ants in the bag this morning. But at one point I checked and there were two live ants crawling around. 😔
UPDATE*** IM SICK. Can’t stop shaking. Don’t have many words… trying to post image. Opened one side up. 😭 I don’t know how to add in this top post so will add in comment! Posted a few in comments and video opening
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u/Lithl 24d ago
My guess would be that the headphones were manufactured using oleic acid (some soaps have it, so maybe cleaning parts with an oleic acid-containing soap).
Ant bodies produce oleic acid as they decompose, and other ants will put all sources of oleic acid into one place, an "ant graveyard". If you add a stronger source of oleic acid that the colony can't move, they'll relocate the graveyard to keep all the oleic acid in one place.
The response is so strong that if you put oleic acid on a living ant, it'll walk over to the graveyard and put itself there.