Scientists have discovered dunatotrips in Australia: these incredibly lazy creatures simply lie on leaves all day.

Researchers from the University of Hull in the UK have discovered that small insects known as Dunatothrips aneurae, which inhabit nests on acacias in Australia, may be the laziest creatures on the planet. This is reported by The Conversation.

Measuring no more than three millimeters, Dunatothrips live in colonies and never leave their tiny nests, which are constructed from silk on leaves. Notably, they face no known predators, and the greatest threat comes from drying out due to heat if their nest happens to be damaged.

Entomologists have been intrigued by the significant presence of "lazy" individuals within their colonies, who do not participate in the colony's activities at all. These lazy Dunatothrips neither build nor repair nests, lay eggs, nor care for the offspring, spending most of their time simply lying motionless on the leaves, "not lifting a finger."

Interestingly, it was found that the active individuals tolerate their lazy "relatives" and do not expel them from the nest. The reasons for such tolerance are not entirely clear, and the scientists who discovered this phenomenon propose several hypotheses. For instance, the "drones" may help maintain a certain level of humidity in the nest with their breathing, preventing it from drying out.

As a reminder, in September, European countries such as Germany, France, and Switzerland attempted to curb the invasion of Tapinoma magnum ants—a species that experts say is "virtually impossible to eradicate." These tiny ants have hundreds of queens and can form several small colonies, which, instead of attacking each other, merge into a single supercolony with millions of individuals.