It was just resting, I thought
On the flagstone path.
Then I saw a couple of ants dashing over
To check it out. I didn’t even notice that it was
Lying on its back, with its limbs in the air
In the classic position of an insect-corpse.
The ants were excited in the way
Of wedding guests at a feast – the first to arrive, wow!
They were tripping over themselves, they were
Falling over and scrambling back upright,
Their antennae gesticulating wildly,
Quite manic, as if drunk or high.
Then they sped away, before I could ask them
What conclusions they had drawn,
Was this a crime scene or a natural death,
Were there witnesses and bereaved family
Members? I waited a few minutes, but
They did not return.
The entomological world has so much beauty often overlooked as "bugs," unfortunate for us. A humungous loss as your example shows.
Such an exquisite corpse! I'm currently writing a play about the naturalist Maria Sibylla Merian (her artwork is amazing!), and that has made me more fascinated with bugs. The delicate filagree and sparkles--wow! I hope my corpse looks half as good. I probably won't have my arms and legs sticking up in the air, though. That might be too rough on the undertaker.
Thanks for the ant thoughts! XO