Ants eat various things depending on the species. They eat small fruits, larger insects than themselves, mushrooms, flowers, honeydew from aphids or trees.

What is the difference between ants and bees?

Actually, ants are part of the bee family! As the name suggests, ants are similar to bees and are sometimes called bees that have chosen to walk the earth.

Don't worker ants slack off?

They slack off. Not all working ants work hard. Some ants bring a lot of food and some ants don’t work at all. Even the most capable ants get tired and need to rest. At that time, the ant that was slacking off earlier seems to take over for the tired ant and move efficiently to collect food. "It’s okay to take a break. I’ll do the rest." Working ants might have such a conversation.

Yes. Ants are eaten by some animals. Anteaters, larvae of dobsonflies, spiders, frogs and others eat ants. It seems that ants also eat ants. You know the ants that carry dead ants? That’s probably… And surprisingly, there are ants that specialize in eating ants. Ants are also desperate to survive.

Is it true that there are ants who love home appliances?

Yes. It’s true. Ants of the species called yellow crazy ants and blue ants, which are small ants about 2mm long, can invade indoors and enter home appliances from gaps in the appliances. I don’t know if they like electromagnetic waves or warm places, but they often cause malfunctions by invading home appliances. If small ants come out indoors and disappear in no time, they may be nesting in your nearby home appliances. Are ants poisonous? Not all species have poison, but some ants do. Ants that have poison include the hiari ant, which is a representative species of ants with poison that has been talked about in the world. Do you know that hiari is written in kanji as “fire ant”? In addition, ants may protect themselves from external enemies by emitting an acid called formic acid from their buttocks. Formic acid is a sour liquid like vinegar. It makes you lose your appetite.

Do ants sometimes eat people?

Japanese ants do not have such scary ants. However, there are scary ants overseas. Army ant companions form a mobile colony while performing a large march called "Death Carpet". After this carpet-like march of ants has passed, there will be no life. These ants are so ferocious that even large cows can be reduced to bones. As a torture of war, there is a thing that people are tied up in the path of this army ant, and there seems to be a story that it has become a skeleton in a day. Very scary!

Is it true that male ants die as soon as they get married?

Yes. That’s true. Male ants become breeding-only ants born only for the purpose of getting married. When they can meet a female through a marriage flight, they pass a sperm capsule to the female. The female carefully stores the capsule in her body and flies out to a new land alone. There, she sheds her wings that look like a wedding dress and builds a nest to produce her own family. The queen ant can produce worker ants and new generations of male and female ants with the sperm capsule she received and the eggs she produces. She raises the children of her loved ones throughout her life. It’s kind of romantic.

Do ants get along well with each other?

Ants of different species never get along. Slave-making ants attack Japanese wood ant nests and carry away eggs and young cocoons. And the Japanese wood ant born after being taken away by the Slave-making ant is made to work as a slave of the Slave-making ant as a worker ant who collects food such as food for the rest of its life. Forced labor ant, isn’t it? Slave-making ants are clever and seem to purposely leave nests alive instead of wiping them out. Because you can create new slaves by doing things like this…it's a scary world.

No. That’s incorrect. Termites are actually part of the cockroach family. Although they look similar to ants, it’s unfair to call them “house-eating termites”. Some ants even like to eat termites.

Is it true that ants do farming?

Yes. It’s true. Leaf-cutter ants cut leaves and carry them back to their nests. They cultivate mushrooms in their nests and use them as their main food source. It’s clear that ants are intelligent creatures that not only carry things to eat directly, but also carry things back to use.

Is it true that there are ants that self-destruct?

Yes. It’s true. There is an ant called Kamikaze ants that stores formic acid in its large abdomen. When an enemy comes, it raises its butt high. And when it is attacked by an enemy… Bang! Its abdomen bursts and it sprays formic acid on the opponent. It’s not a species found in Japan, but there are many interesting ants in the world.

Animal Article

Ant

Ants are everywhere in our daily lives, but there are still many things about them that are not yet known. Like us humans, ants form groups and build societies to act. Let’s explore the secrets of these interesting ants together!