what use are they

[tinkertontom]

what use are ants ,snails,slugs and wasps

[alfieblue]

not sure! ants are mega intelligent but hate it when we get flying ants! snails and slugs eat the plants but hedgehogs love slugs!!! So encourage hoggies into your garden. As for wasps - read my stuff - hate them, spiteful little things!

[gen2]

I am not sure what you mean by being "of use". Of use to whom? Of use to what?

It would be arrogant to assume all living creatures on this planet exist to be of use to humans.

Each organism exists only to procreate and further its own existence. In order to that though, aech organism requires the coexistence of certain other organisms which in turn also depend on others to survive. Every living organism is linked to others through a complex web. Ants snails and wasps are part of that web.

[China Doll]

There's a wasp about an inch long that lives in a tree in the rainforest. Without that wasp the tree would die as it's the basis for the ecosystem within it.

[alfieblue]

oh dear! Im afraid im not that intelligent! But good on you. I like to think that i consider all creatures as having some part in life. Unfortunately, wasps scare me to death. Having been stung badly when younger.Ican though understand your logic. No doubt we all have a purpose in life.

[China Doll]

Ha! Intelligence has little to nothing to do with it!

I've a phobia of anything with more than four legs. But I do believe in knowing the enemy... Did you know that ants wage war and take prisoners and make them slaves? I think they're supposed to be the only creatures other than humans that do this but I'm not sure how true that i.

As far as I'm aware, ants in thi country act a little bit like dustbin men too, they clear debris and what have you so we'd probably notice life without them. Worms turn soil as they move as well also being little cleaners too.

Wasps are carnivourous so pressuambly without them we'd have a lot more problems with the bugs that eat our crops.

I have to say I don't know much about slugs or snails but then they don't scare the bejesus out of me!

[China Doll]

All in all, bugs (technical term don't ya know!) are pretty fascinating little blighters.

[alfieblue]

i agree! they are all clever little blighters!!! I am ok just so long as they don't come too near me!!! o)

[tinkertontom]

thanks for all your replies I wanted to know what exactly they did to help the garden and growing of plants

[tigerlily11]

Ants in general are litter clearsers. Slugs and snails are trimmers and tidiers but have the habit of going nuts.
Wasps on the other hand are pointless. I haven't yet worked out what they are for.
I hate spiders but I know they are here to keep fly numbers down so I don't kill them if I can help it but they make me feel sick when I see them. Why on earth they should I don't know because we have no seriously poisonous spiders here in England.

[gen2]

Quote:
I hate spiders but I know they are here to keep fly numbers down so I don't kill them if I can help it...

No tigerlily11, They are not here to keep fly numbers down. Spiders exist because they have been successful in perpetuating their genes. They have found a niche where they survive by consuming flies. If there was to be a boom in fly numbers, this would be no harm at all to spiders - in fact it might lead to an increase in spider numbers. There has therefore been no evolutionary pressure to evolve spiders that wipe out (or seriously reduce) fly populations.

In short, spiders are NOT there to keep down fly numbers. Simply, by being there, they do result in a reduction in the number of flies, but this is a result, not a purpose.


If you were to apply your logic to other species then you would be saying that malaria exists to keep down the number of humans.