Fortified positions let termite soldiers defeat numerically superior army ants

Evidence

Termites rely on fortresses to defend themselves against attacks by army ants. By restricting access to a small number of tunnels, termites remove the numerical advantage of the army ants, forcing their soldiers to confront termite soldiers in duels the termites are likely to win. — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 970 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Aardvarks tear through the side of a mound, slurping up termites with their long, sticky tongues. They amble on once they’ve had their fill, but the holes they dig take time to repair. If an exposed mound is discovered by siafu, the result can be disastrous. As soon as the walls are breached, tactical advantage returns to attackers, since they’ve got the greater numbers. Invading armies swarm in, and cities perish. — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 490 (#responds-to, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Fortified architecture lets termites negate an enemy’s numerical superiority — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 970; Breached fortifications restore numerical advantage to massed attackers in termite warfare — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 490; Fortification-artillery escalation mirrors predator-prey arms races, not rival contests

Related

• Breached fortifications restore numerical advantage to massed attackers in termite warfare (similarity 0.95)
• Fortified architecture lets termites negate an enemy’s numerical superiority (similarity 0.94)
• Narrow entrance gates cancel the numerical advantage of massed attackers, favoring the better-armed defender (similarity 0.85)
• Two termite soldier types evolved radically different defense weaponry (similarity 0.79)
• Fortification-artillery escalation mirrors predator-prey arms races, not rival contests (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Fortified architecture lets termites negate an enemy’s numerical superiority #corroborates (0.95) — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 970
• Breached fortifications restore numerical advantage to massed attackers in termite warfare #responds-to (0.80) — Emlen, Douglas J, Animal Weapons_ The Evolution of Battle, 490
• Fortification-artillery escalation mirrors predator-prey arms races, not rival contests #complicates (0.35)