Ant cleanliness

I fished an ant and a ladybug out of my swimming pool this afternoon as I was cleaning the filter box. They were both still alive, much to my surprise, and I watched as the ladybug navigated its way over the rough terrain of the pebble dash pool surround. The and, a medium-sized black everyday garden variety type of ant, walked a few steps and then began to clean itself using its forelegs. First it wiped its antennae, then the rest of its head, then its middle legs and its back legs. I have seen flies cleaning themselves; rubbing their heads between their forelegs sometimes seeming to twist their heads to an alarming extent. I did not know that ants did the same thing, but then I have never really thought about it before. This ant reminded me of my cat in the way in which it gave careful detailed attention to each part of its body before moving on to the next.