Student Article
Amazing Ants: Supercolonies, Survival Tricks, and Spirals of Doom
Queen (noun): The main female ant who lays all the eggs.
Colony (noun): A group of animals of the same kind living together.
Raft (noun): A floating platform, made by ants using their own bodies.
Spiral (noun): A shape that curls around and around like a circle.
Ants are small insects, but they often live in large groups called colonies. A colony may have one queen or several queens. It also has many worker ants and sometimes soldier ants. Each ant has a job. Together, they help the colony survive.
Some ants live in huge families
Some ants, such as Argentine ants, live in supercolonies. These giant groups can stretch for thousands of miles and contain millions of ants. The ants share a similar smell, which helps them know that other ants are part of their family.
Ants have amazing survival skills
Ants have some clever ways to survive. South American fire ants can survive floods by making floating rafts with their bodies. They hold on to one another and float until they reach safety.
In Africa, Matabele ants help injured ants from their colony. They lick the wounds of injured ants, which can help them heal and fight infections.
Ants can get stuck in a circle
Ants can sometimes lose their path. When this happens, they may follow one another in a circle. This is called a “death spiral.” The ants can keep marching in circles until they become too tired to continue.
Ants can use tools
Some ants even use simple tools. They drop leaves into liquid food. The leaves soak up the liquid, and the ants carry the leaves back to their nest.
Ants may be small, but they have amazing ways to work together, find food, and survive.
© Richard Jones / Our Media
Queen (noun): The main female ant who lays all the eggs.
Colony (noun): A group of animals of the same kind living together.
Raft (noun): A floating platform, made by ants using their own bodies.
Spiral (noun): A shape that curls around and around like a circle.