Mesoscale Area Research Articles

Mesoscale Variations in the Number of Thunder Days Over the Japanese Archipelago During the Past Fifty‐Six Years

ABSTRACTThe spatial and temporal variations of cumulonimbus clouds (Cbs) that produce lightning have mesoscale characteristics due to the nature of Cbs and the influence of topography; however, previous studies have lacked a mesoscale perspective because historical lightning observations relied on human observation. In this study, mesoscale variations in the number of thunder days (TDs) over the Japanese Archipelago over a 56‐year period were investigated using manned observation data (Period 1: 1954–1963) and radio‐wave observation data (Period 2: 2010–2019). A comparison of the two periods of Period 1 and Period 2 revealed that the locations of mesoscale areas with high TDs did not change significantly; however, the number of TDs increased in most mesoscale areas and it was not possible to identify any mesoscale areas with a significant decreasing trend. The characteristics of mesoscale variation varied with the season as follows: (1) Winter (November–January): the number of TDs along the coastal lands of the Sea of Japan increased significantly. The variations in the synoptic‐scale winter pressure pattern with low stability were one of the factors contributing to the increasing trend of TDs. (2) In the first half of the Baiu season (June), the number of TDs increased in two regions: one region was the south of Japan associated with the Baiu front, while the second region was the northern area of Japan, where the influence of the Baiu front is limited. (3) Summer (August): the number of TDs in mountainous areas tended to increase significantly, and the variation in the water vapour content was significantly correlated with the variation in the number of TDs. The number of TDs in the foothills did not increase significantly. (4) Akisame season (September): the number of TDs along the Pacific Ocean coast significantly increased.

A nanoscale view of the origin of boiling and its dynamics

In this work, we present a dynamical theory of boiling based on fluctuating hydrodynamics and the diffuse interface approach. The model is able to describe boiling from the stochastic nucleation up to the macroscopic bubble dynamics. It covers, with a modest computational cost, the mesoscale area from nano to micrometers, where most of the controversial observations related to the phenomenon originate. In particular, the role of wettability in the macroscopic observables of boiling is elucidated. In addition, by comparing the ideal case of boiling on ultra-smooth surfaces with a chemically heterogeneous wall, our results will definitively shed light on the puzzling low onset temperatures measured in experiments. Sporadic nanometric spots of hydrophobic wettability will be shown to be enough to trigger the nucleation at low superheat, significantly reducing the temperature of boiling onset, in line with experimental results. The proposed mesoscale approach constitutes the missing link between macroscopic approaches and molecular dynamics simulations and will open a breakthrough pathway toward accurate understanding and prediction.

Cross-scale erosion on shore platforms using the micro-erosion meter and Structure-from-Motion (SfM) photogrammetry

Investigations comparing surface downwearing rates derived from photogrammetry data and the micro-erosion meters (MEM) are limited due to the former's coarse spatial resolution and the temporal scale of data collection. These space and time limitations were revisited with the possibility of simultaneously using the Structure-from-Motion (SfM) photogrammetric workflow and the MEM. Using a cross-scale nested survey approach over one year to cover micro (10−2 m2) and meso (100 m2)-spatial scales, this paper presents erosion rates on uplifted intertidal shore platforms and marine terraces at Kaikōura Peninsula, New Zealand. The survey represents one of the first investigations combining the MEM and the SfM technique to estimate erosion rates on horizontal coastal bedrock. In a unique way, we applied established methods which allowed comparative accuracy between models via similar point matching to provide a detailed representation and visualisation of the changing rock surfaces at similar spatial and temporal scales. Over one year, across a microscale area (~0.01 m2) of rock, the MEM and SfM point clouds (SfM PCs) measured the lowest and highest erosion rates on a similar rock type and erosion site. The mean annual erosion rate of 2.244 mm/yr from the MEM was lower than the rates of 2.608 mm/yr and 10.299 mm/yr estimated using the SfM micro- and mesoscale PCs, respectively. A lower range of erosion rates (0.131 to 4.750 mm/yr) was measured using the MEM compared to erosion rates estimated from the SfM microscale PCs (0.194 to 10.106 mm/yr). Across the mesoscale (1 m2) areas, higher erosion rates were recorded using the SfM mesoscale PCs on all but one erosion site showing that a significant amount of erosion was undetected by the MEM. Using the SfM-orthomosaics, we link the erosion rates measured across the micro and mesoscale areas to intense granular disintegration, flaking, micro- and polygonal cracking and biological activities. These results provide statistical evidence to argue against extrapolating MEM erosion data obtained over small areas to larger areas on shore platforms affected by recent tectonic uplift. The implications of these findings are considered within the context of techniques for measuring shore platform erosion across spatial and temporal scales.

A quasi-brittle fracture investigation of concrete structures integrating random fields with the CSFEM-PFCZM

Design and maintenance of concrete structures require efficient methods for predicting quasi-brittle fracture while incorporating mesoscale-induced structural uncertainties. Toward this aim, a phase field cohesive zone model combined with the cell-based smoothed finite element method (CSFEM-PFCZM) is developed in the study, with mesoscale heterogeneity of concrete characterised by Weibull random fields. An automatic quadtree decomposition technique is presented to adaptively refine meshes around mesoscale areas, in which the hanging-node problem is tackled by treating hierarchical quadtree elements as CSFEM polygons. The crack driving forces are evaluated as history variables at the integration points of CSFEM subcells, and only the boundary geometry and Wachspress shape functions are needed to calculate strain matrices and stiffness matrices without the Jacobian inversion problems. The developed method is validated by extensive Monte Carlo simulations of typical nonlinear fracture benchmarks of concrete structures, demonstrating that the well-captured variability of crack paths and load–displacement curves can supplement the limited statistical results obtained from a small number of experiments. It is also found that larger correlation length and higher variance underline higher heterogeneity that leads to more dispersed responses. The developed method holds promise for the efficient evaluation of structural reliability taking into account stochastic mesoscale effects, due to the fast generation of random field samples in large quantities and flexible simulation of complicated fracture through the CSFEM-PFCZM.

Physics-Guided Reduced-Order Representation of Three-Dimensional Sound Speed Fields with Ocean Mesoscale Eddies

Ocean mesoscale eddies have an important role in the ocean and affect the underwater sound speed field (SSF). Many physical models have been proposed for mesoscale eddy three-dimensional (3D) structure analysis and construction. Here, we propose a model for the reduced-order representation of 3D SSF with ocean mesoscale eddies. Particularly, the radial basis functions (RBFs), which are guided by the universal physics model of mesoscale eddy in horizontal dimensions, are employed. RBF and empirical orthogonal function (EOF) are used as basis functions for 3D representation. The proposed method is an approximation of the classical Gaussian eddy model in the first-order form. Simulation results confirm the reduced-order representation performance and effectiveness in reconstruction using 136 days of HYCOM data in the northwestward of the South China Sea with a warm eddy and a cold eddy. The proposed RBF + EOF method roughly halves the number of coefficients for mesoscale eddy representation, compared with classical methods. The reduced-order representation method can be utilized in ocean acoustic tomography and acoustic remote sensing in a mesoscale area.

Application of a Wind Environment Simulation Generation Technology in Urban Planning

With the acceleration of urbanization, cities have shown a development trend of high density, high height, and high intensity, which significantly weakens the airflow in the city, resulting in the accumulation of heat and pollutants, and in the urban environment, the problem is getting worse. Therefore, it is particularly necessary to strengthen urban ventilation in the urban environment. However, in the real urban environment, the building layouts are diverse, the building forms are different, and the interaction of the building wind environment is complex due to the lack of relevant research on the complex building spatial form in the urban mesoscale area on the outdoor pedestrian. The research results are difficult to be applied in actual urban construction, and it is difficult to guide the optimization of the urban wind environment. To solve this problem, this paper adopts the CFD method in a real-scale (1 : 1) urban mesoscale regional wind environment simulation study. On this basis, the influencing factors of the urban pedestrian wind environment are analyzed, and the optimization strategy of the wind environment is proposed, which can provide practical guidance for the planning practice of enhancing urban wind comfort.

Examining the pathways for deformation band formation at the mesoscale

At the macroscopic scale, strain accumulation is known to form parallel to the plane of maximum shear stress. In this work, plastic strain accumulation is tracked across four mesoscale areas of interests. Each representing a different configuration of tension-torsion loading. The local deviations in the deformation pathways were investigated relative to the plane of maximum shear stress. The deviations in the deformation pathways were observed to be a function of the local plastic strain magnitude and the microstructural features. From these results, a representative volume element was created based on the macroscopic and micromechanical deformations as well as the spatial statistics of the deformation bands.

Spatial variability of epi- and mesopelagic 38 kHz backscatter from nekton and macrozooplankton across the southeastern US shelf break

Acoustic echosounders collect detailed information on the location of patchily distributed pelagic organisms over varying spatial scales. This study measured the spatial variability of epi- and mesopelagic 38 kHz backscatter along the US Mid- and South Atlantic continental shelf and slope. We used variogram analysis to estimate the horizontal spatial structure of backscatter measurements, examined whether environmental variables might affect these estimates, and assessed potential impacts of acoustic survey design. Backscatter data were collected during ship-based surveys (50-100 km2) at 7 sites during 4 cruises between November 2017 and November 2019. Average patch size estimates were consistently between 2 and 4 km among locations. Modeled variogram range varied significantly with the depth of the backscatter layer, but linear effect sizes were negligible (<1 m). Chlorophyll a (chl a) concentration had a significant positive effect on range (95 m), suggesting that patch sizes are slightly larger in the epipelagic where chl a concentration is higher. Incorporating variogram parameters of range, sill, and nugget produced some clustering of spatial correlation parameters with scattering layer depth, particularly for the deepest sites assessed (700-900 m depth). Spatial characteristics of a given location were not significantly different between surveys of the same size, but sometimes differed with smaller (25% of area) survey sizes. These results offer insight into nekton and macrozooplankton backscatter patterns in important shelf break and slope systems across horizontal and vertical dimensions, and provide needed information for monitoring fine- to mesoscale offshore marine habitat areas.

Risk analysis of a cross-regional toxic chemical disaster by using the integrated mesoscale and microscale consequence analysis model

The rapidly growing capacity and scale of the world's petrochemical industries have forced many plants to have an even larger amount of hazardous substances. Once a serious leak occurs, the outcome of the effect zone could be very large or even uncontrollable just like the Bhopal disaster. In order to assess the risk of a cross-regional damage, this study aims to develop a model that can combine the benefits of both CFD model of the microscale simulation and the Gaussian dispersion model of the mesoscale simulation.The developed integrated model is employed on a toxic chemical tank leak accident of a process plant within an industrial park in order to explore the consequences and the risk of the toxic gas dispersion on three different scopes; one is the accident site, the second is the long-distance transmission route of the mesoscale area and the third is a target city. According to the simulation's results, it is obvious that the complexity of the structure surrounding the leaking tank will eventually affect the maximum ground concentration, the cloud shapes and cloud dilution rate, while the released gas is under dispersion. On the other hand, since the simple Gaussian dispersion model doesn't consider the above impacts, its calculation results will have many differences as compared to the realistic situation. This integrated model can be used as a tool for estimating the risk on a microscale or mesoscale areas and it can produce better results when an environmental impact analysis is required for a larger hazardous chemical process.

Modeling the effect of hypothetical chlorine leakage from Malay-Sino Chemical Industries using ALOHA software and development of an emergency evacuation route around Teluk Kalong industrial area

Malay-Sino Chemical Industries in Teluk Kalong is the largest chlor-alkali manufacturer in Malaysia, which may potentially affect the safety of plant workers and nearby residential area in the event accidental chlorine leakage. The dispersion of a hypothetical chlorine leakage from Malay-Sino Chemical Industries in Teluk Kalong industrial area was modelled using ALOHA. The effect of different wind direction, wind speed and time in the meteorological mesoscale area was evaluated. The wind speed ranging from 1.55 to 11.1 m/s obtained from a local weather station was considered. Heavy gas dispersion model was used to determine the concentration of chlorine plume within the area of concern. The leakage rate was set at 702 kg/h. The result showed that the residential area R5 (Kampung Bukit Kuang, and Kampung Sungai Terjun) is affected by the plume dispersed by northern wind at night. A greater hazard zone can be formed under the wind speed below 1.55 m/s. A suitable safety evacuation routes were proposed to reduce the risk of exposure to hazardous gas. Finding from this work is useful to understand the risk of hazardous gas dispersion around Teluk Kalong industrial area.

Spatial structure of the macroand meiobenthic communities in homogenous conditions (on the example of the Pechora Sea)

Spatial structure of the macroand meiobenthic communities of the south-eastern Barents Sea (also known as Pechora Sea) was investigated in 2003 during the expedition of the RV «Professor Shtokman». One grid of the stations was used for both benthic size classes. Community dominated by Serripes groenlandicus occupied the most part of the investigated polygon, Astarte borealis dominated the easternmost station. Described communities are in correspondence with historic data. In the meiobenthic communities, nematodes played a leading role, accounting for 86–94% of the total number. Nematode Richtersia inaequalis was dominant on most stations, at the northernmost station the nematodes Cervonema papillatum and Microlaimus affinis dominated. The temperature and the salinity of the near-bottom water layer were homogenous, macroand meiobenthic communities were not influenced by grain size. In contrast to our expectations, communities of the macroand meiobenthos were distributed independently of each other on the mesoscale area (30×11 km).

Multi-element isotopic signature (C, N, Pb, Hg) in epiphytic lichens to discriminate atmospheric contamination as a function of land-use characteristics (Pyrénées-Atlantiques, SW France)

Multi-elemental isotopic approach associated with a land-use characteristic sampling strategy may be relevant for conducting biomonitoring studies to determine the spatial extent of atmospheric contamination sources. In this work, we investigated how the combined isotopic signatures in epiphytic lichens of two major metallic pollutants, lead (206Pb/207Pb) and mercury (δ202Hg, Δ199Hg), together with the isotopic composition of nitrogen and carbon (δ15N, δ13C), can be used to better constrain atmospheric contamination inputs. To this end, an intensive and integrated sampling strategy based on land-use characteristics (Geographic information system, GIS) over a meso-scale area (Pyrénées-Atlantiques, SW France) was applied to more than 90 sampling stations. To depict potential relationships between such multi-elemental isotopic fingerprint and land-use characteristics, multivariate analysis was carried out. Combined Pb and Hg isotopic signatures resolved spatially the contribution of background atmospheric inputs from long range transport, from local legacy contamination (i.e. Pb) or actual industrial inputs (i.e. Pb and Hg from steel industry). Application of clustering multivariate analysis to all studied isotopes provided a new assessment of the region in accordance with the land-use characteristics and anthropogenic pressures.

Long-term changes in the planktonic cnidarian community in a mesoscale area of the NW Mediterranean

In the present work, possible long-term changes in the planktonic cnidarian community were investigated by analyzing (1) species and community spatial distribution patterns, (2) variations in abundance and (3) changes in species richness during three mesoscale surveys representative of the climatic and anthropogenic changes that have occurred during the last three decades (years: 1983, 2004 and 2011) in the NW Mediterranean. These surveys were conducted during the summer (June) along the Catalan coast. All surveys covered the same area, used the same sampling methodology, and taxonomic identification was conducted by the same team of experts. An increase in the abundance of total cnidaria was found from 1983 to 2011. The siphonophore Muggiaea atlantica and the hydromedusa Aglaura hemistoma were the most abundant species, while Muggiaea kochii presented the largest abundance increment over time. Temperature was the main environmental parameter driving significant differences in the cnidarian community composition, abundance and spatial distribution patterns among the surveys. Our results suggest that in the current climate change scenario, warm-water species abundances will be positively favored, and the community will suffer changes in their latitudinal distribution patterns. We consider it extremely important to study and monitor gelatinous zooplankton in mesoscale spatial areas to understand not only long-term changes in abundances but also changes in their spatial distributions since spatial changes are sensitive indicators of climate change.

Using Synthetic Brightness Temperatures to Address Uncertainties in Cloud-Top-Height Verification

AbstractCloud-top verification is inherently difficult because of large uncertainties in the estimates of observed cloud-top height. Misplacement of cloud top associated with transmittance through optically thin cirrus is one of the most common problems. Forward radiative models permit a direct comparison of predicted and observed radiance, but uncertainties in the vertical position of clouds remain. In this work, synthetic brightness temperatures are compared with forecast cloud-top heights so as to investigate potential errors and develop filters to remove optically thin ice clouds. Results from a statistical analysis reveal that up to 50% of the clouds with brightness temperatures as high as 280 K are actually optically thin cirrus. The filters successfully removed most of the thin ice clouds, allowing for the diagnosis of very specific errors. The results indicate a strong negative bias in midtropospheric cloud cover in the model, as well as a lack of land-based convective cumuliform clouds. The model also predicted an area of persistent stratus over the North Atlantic Ocean that was not apparent in the observations. In contrast, high cloud tops associated with deep convection were well simulated, as were mesoscale areas of enhanced trade cumulus coverage in the Sargasso Sea.

Surface quality evaluation in meso-scale end-milling operation based on fractal theory and the Taguchi method

This paper presents a study of the Taguchi application to optimize surface quality based on fractal theory in meso-scale end-milling operation. Usually, the surface quality is characterized by roughness, but in the meso-scale area, the size of the workpiece will be difficult to meet the requirements of the sampling length, which will have a huge influence on the characterization results. Although there are many algorithms for adjusting, the operation process is very cumbersome; for this reason, characterization method based on fractal theory is introduced and applied to evaluate the machined surface in the research. Also, the Taguchi method is applied to search the optimal parameters combination, during which spindle speed, depth of cut, and feed rate are considered as the control factors. Specifically, firstly, the machining surface characterization method based on fractal theory is introduced in details; then, an orthogonal array of L25(53) is used for the experimental study; through ANOVA analyses, the significant factors which affect surface quality are established, and the optimal cutting parameter combination is determined; later, confirmation tests are carried out to verify the applicability of the characterization methods for the meso-scale cutting surface. Research shows that fractal characterization method is better to evaluate the surface quality in the meso-scale.

Approach to spatialize local to long-range atmospheric metal input (Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb) in epiphytic lichens over a meso-scale area (Pyrénées-Atlantiques, southwestern France).

Geographically based investigations into atmospheric bio-monitoring usually provide information on concentration or occurrence data and spatial trends of specific contaminants over a specified study area. In this work, an original approach based on geographic information system (GIS) was used to establish metal contents (Hg, Cu, Pb, and Cd) in epiphytic lichens from 90 locations as atmospheric bio-monitors over a meso-scale area (Pyrénées-Atlantiques, southwestern France). This approach allows the integration of the heterogeneity of the territory and optimization of the sampling sites based on both socioeconomical and geophysical parameters (hereafter defined as urban, industrial, agricultural, and forested areas). The sampling strategy was first evaluated in several sites (n = 15) over different seasons and years in order to follow the temporal variability of the atmospheric metal input in lichens. The results demonstrate that concentration ranges remain constant over different sampling periods in "rural" areas (agricultural and forested). Higher variability is observed in the "anthropized" urban and industrial areas in relation to local atmospheric inputs. In this context, metal concentrations in lichens over the whole study show that (1) Hg and Cd are homogeneous over the whole territory (0.14 ± 0.04 and 0.38 ± 0.26mg/kg, respectively), whereas (2) Cu and Pb are more concentrated in "anthropized" areas (9.3 and 11.9mg/kg, respectively) than in "rural" ones (6.8 and 6.0mg/kg, respectively) (Kruskall-Wallis, K(Cu) = 13.7 and K(Pb) = 9.7, p < 0.00001). They also showed a significant local enrichment for all metals in many locations in the Pays Basque (West) mainly due to metal and steel industrial activities. This confirms the local contribution of this contamination source over a wider geographic scale. A multiple linear regression model was applied to give an integrated spatialization of the data. This showed significant relationships for Pb and Cu (adjusted r (2) of 0.39 and 0.45, respectively), especially with regards to variables such as industry and road densities (source factors) and elevation or water balance (remote factors). These results show that an integrated GIS-based sampling strategy can improve biomonitoring data distribution and allows better differentiation of local and long-range contamination.

From meso-scale to micro scale LES modelling: Application by a wake effect study for an offshore wind farm

The object of the study is to present the first step of the development of a methodology that aims to merge the gap between meso scale and micro scale modelling. WRF simulations have been carried out in order to consider global wind conditions over a meso scale area of the future wind farm. A statistical analysis of the global wind data over several years has been carried out to initiate the work for the Saint Nazaire site. A focus was made on two wind regimes: the most common wind typical of the site's location and the extreme winds over the period. The WRF results were then used as initial conditions for a micro scale simulation carried out by a non-stationary large-eddy simulation (SOWFA) tool based OpenFOAM solver that computes the flow around 2 turbines. Turbulence statistics were computed and analyzed. Fields of skewness and flatness show found that the distribution of turbulence becomes more homogeneous after the second turbine, while turbulence intensity increases.

A comparison of primary production models in an area of high mesoscale variability (South Shetland Islands, Antarctica)

Three types of primary productivity (PP) models were evaluated in a mesoscale area around the South Shetland Islands (Antarctica). Input variables were: phytoplankton carbon biomass, Chlorophyll a, sea water temperature, daily irradiance, among others, collected in situ during an oceanographic cruise (COUPLING, January 2010). Models of the first type were based on Chl a measurements: the widely used model VGPM (Behrenfeld and Falkowski, 1997) and a derived version developed for the Western Antarctic Peninsula (Dierssen et al., 2000). The second type included two models based on phytoplankton carbon biomass: one developed for the whole Southern Ocean (Arrigo et al., 2008) and one based on the Metabolic Theory of Ecology developed by López-Urrutia et al. (2006), being the first time that a model with these features is used for Antarctic waters. The third type was an updated version of the carbon-based model CbPM (first described by Behrenfeld et al. (2005)) based on the Chl a/carbon biomass ratio modulation. The degree of agreement among the results between the different types of models turned out to be low (>30% of difference), but high within models of the same type (<10% of difference). Biomass-based model predictions differed the most from those estimated by the other two types. The differences in PP estimates were primarily attributed to the different ways these models treat the phytoplankton assemblage, along with the difference in input variables. Among the five models evaluated, the output from the modified version of the CbPM showed the lowest bias (0.55) being the most realistic. It made a special attempt to detect the factors controlling phytoplankton physiological state, showing a nutrient limitation towards the Drake area similar to the one observed for the in situ PP values.

Spatiotemporal analysis of soil moisture observations within a Tibetan mesoscale area and its implication to regional soil moisture measurements

summary A mesoscale Tibetan Plateau Soil Moisture/Temperature Monitoring Network (SMTMN) has been established to study large-scale soil–vegetation–atmosphere interactions and to validate satellite soil moisture products. Soil moisture at four layers (0–5 cm, 10 cm, 20 cm, and 40 cm) of 30 sites was monitored since July, 2010. This paper firstly introduces the network and then presents preliminary spatiotemporal analyses based on the in situ soil moisture measurements in SMTMN. Three temporal scales (half-hourly, daily, and 10-days) and three time periods corresponding to typical soil wetness conditions, including frozen soil in winter times, are discussed. Primary findings are: (a) generally 13 randomly distributed sites in the study domain are required (i.e. number of required sites) to estimate areal mean soil moisture with correlation coefficient P0.99 and root mean square difference 60.02 m 3 m � 3 . This provides guidance for future soil moisture network establishment in similar regions; (b) both number of required sites and the most representative site are insensitive to temporal scales while conversely sensitive to soil wetness conditions; (c) the combination of a few optimally-selected sites can give more robust estimate of areal mean soil moisture than a single site does because the former contains more information on spatial heterogeneity. These findings can provide not only a practical compromise between maintenance cost and risk on reliability for an existing soil moisture network, but also insights for soil moisture upscaling studies and satellite soil moisture products validations.

Investigating the isotopic composition of mercury and lead in epiphytic lichens from South-western France (Pyrénées-Atlantiques) to better constrain the spatial variability of their atmospheric transport and deposition

The geographical variability of the elemental concentration and isotopic composition of mercury and lead was evaluated in epiphytic lichens collected over a mesoscale area (Pyrenees-Atlantiques, Southwestern France). The sampling points have been selected according to different parameters in order to represent the main land use classification of the investigated territory (urban, industrial, agricultural and forestal zones). Total concentrations of Hg are homogenous over the territory (mean 0.14 mg/kg dry weight) and reflect the European atmospheric anthropogenic background deposition. A significant trend is observed for lead concentrations between anthropogenized areas (~11 mg/kg) and remote areas (~6mg/kg), mainly due to local road traffic and industrial inputs. The isotopic composition of Hg reveals a relatively homogeneous signature specific of remote areas, while the lead isotopic composition is distributed along two distinct origins: past leaded gasoline and geogenic background. This study shows that the spatial concentration variability observed is globally consistent with the isotopic signatures of Hg and Pb recorded in lichens which partly explain the origin of these two metallic contaminants.