Ants

Ants (Formicidae)

You might be surprised that ants belong to this group of flying insects. Several times a year though the ants do actually fly. The animals that take off are males and young queens. After impregnation which takes place hight up in the air the males die and the queens try to find a place to start a new colony. The ants you normally see, hurrying from who-knows-where to who-wants-to-know-where are workers. These never get wings. In most European gardens you will see the (Common) Black Ant (also known as Slave Ant or Silky Ant in the USA). It is a close relative of the well known Red Wood Ant.

To the left: probably a winged queen of the Southern (or Red) Wood Ant (Formica rufa). To the right: Even the Black Ant (Formica fusca) develops winged specimens.

Closely related to the Black Ant is the Yellow Meadow Ant, often simply referred to as Yellow Ant. It too forms large colonies, but it prefers grass in which it makes small heaps. It leaves mainly underground and is seldom seen running about in the garden like the Black Ant.

This is most probably the Yellow Meadow Ant (Lasius flavus).

Below is another yellow species. It resembles the species above, but definitely is not: the connection between the two main body parts is definetely different. This indicates that it is a Myrmica-species, most probably Myrmica rubra, the Red Ant, also called the European Red Ant. It has got a functional sting and the stings even hurt, for an acid is injected into the victim.

Another colourful species in our garden: most likely to be the Red Ant (Myrmica rubra).

The best known ant in all Britain probably is the Black Garden Ant. The name is slightly misleading, for many individuals are dark brown rather than black. This species is present even in the tiniest garden, where it builds its underground nest along paths or under steps, sidewalks or even walls. It is an omnivorous animal. It will attack and kill other small insects, but will also take small cadavers, parts of plants, fungi or seeds into the nest. They love the honeydew produced by plant lice and will even actively milk the lice to get even more. As a reward they will protect the aphids from small natural enemies, such as lady birds. Workers and males are some 3 to 5 mm in lenth, queens measure up to 9 mm. Queens can be seen in summer, when the ants start to swarm. Being stingless they will bite people in defense, but are hardly ever able to really penetrate the skin. Their bites usually only cause a ticklish sensation.

The Black Garden Ant (Lasius niger) probably is the most common species all over Britain.

Ants often live in very big colonies, called states. One colony may have millions of members, especially with tropical species. Keeping such a large colony in good working order a lot has to be done. And that's why various types of ants exist within the colony: the queen, that produces the eggs, workers that collect food and look after the young, soldiers that protect the colony and finally males. Sometimes there are even various types of workers: with big heads to transport food, with small heads to look after the young. Some are constantly on the look for new food sources (they are called scouts).

A simple flower is an entire world of its own to a tiny ant.

There are animals that do actually live inside an ant colony. Just turn over some rocks and you might find not only the Black Garden Ant, but the white and blind Ant Woodlouse as well. Also some species of beetles live inside ant's nests. More on this remarkable woodlouse at the Centipedes Page.

The Ant Woodlouse (Platyarthrus hoffmannseggi) quickly disappears in the nest of Lasius niger, the Black Garden Ant.

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