• Stantana@lemmy.sambands.net
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    1 year ago

    They’re just following the trail of pheromones ahead of them. It goes around in circles so they’ll just walk and walk until they die of exhaustion.

    Never heard about it so had to read up on it, it’s as obscure as a rat king to me.

        • funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works
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          1 year ago

          reason why i said “most” not “all” most examples are from the 17th and 18th century when proof was hard to ascertain and there have only been a handful of modern occurring examples since the prevalence of science and photography

          • Curiousfur@yiffit.net
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            1 year ago

            Far fewer rats living like they did in the 17th and 18th century nowadays, though. It really feels like one of those things where it’s difficult to prove either way since the conditions cannot be duplicated in modern times. I’m still leaning towards more being faked, but not having huge chunks of a population living in 17th century squalor may be a factor in whether or not a rat king could actually form.

            • Ænima@lemm.ee
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              1 year ago

              Far fewer rats living like they did in the 17th and 18th century nowadays, though.

              TIL rats also have wealthy capitalists siphoning the means of production. Imagine being a rat back then. All the free food and squalor. Makes sense there would be more kings!

            • funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works
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              1 year ago

              fair. but having gone through a phase where I read all of Crowley, Eteilla, Charles Fort, bunch of Golden Dawn / Rosicrucian texts etc I just get this feeling that it was hokum most of the time for dramatic effect