What an ant looks like: how the structure ensures the survival of insects
Insects make up a huge proportion of all living things on the planet. They were able to conquer the surface and depth of the earth, the underwater world, and even airspace. Some families of insects are so advanced that their way of life has become very similar to that of humans. In this regard, one of the most advanced creatures are ants.
Content
Who are ants
Ants are one of the many families of insects. They are part of the order Hymenoptera and are relatives of bees, wasps and bumblebees. Ants are also considered one of the most common insects in the world and even a child will not be difficult to identify them.
What do ants look like
The numerous "ant family" includes more than 14 thousand different species. Sometimes the appearance of representatives of certain species can differ significantly from the rest. This is due both to the climatic conditions in which specific insects live, and to their way of life.
Ant.
The body length of ants can vary from 1 to 50 mm. The main part of ant communities is made up of working individuals, whose body length most often ranges from 1 to 30 mm. Sexually mature females can boast of the largest sizes. Their body can reach a length of 3,5 to 5 cm.
The body color of different species can vary greatly. Most often, a person encounters ants of black or brown colors, but some species can boast of a different color:
- beige;
- brown red;
- yellow-orange;
- light green.
Ant body structure
Ant structure.
The body of the ant is similar in structure to the bodies of other Hymenoptera, but has its own characteristics. The main departments in the body of an ant are:
- head;
- chest;
- abdomen;
- limbs;
- internal organs.
Ant lifestyle
The vast majority of ants are social insects that live in large colonies in common nests. The population of one anthill can range from several hundred to millions of individuals. Within such an ant family there is a strict order and hierarchy.
Each inhabitant of the anthill has certain duties and tasks that he responsibly performs. Any colony of insects usually consists of such individuals.
| Queen | She is the queen, she is the uterus - a sexually mature female, which is responsible for reproduction. She spends almost her entire life in the nest, replenishing the ant family with new members. The uterus is much larger than the rest of the ants and their average life span is from 10 to 20 years. |
| working | They are the main population of the anthill. In most cases, these are females incapable of fertilization, whose duties include ensuring the life of the entire colony. They take care of eggs, larvae, pupae and the queen, make food supplies for all the inhabitants of the nest, remove sewage from the dwelling, build and repair an anthill, “graze” aphids and even grow mushrooms. |
| Soldiers | In fact, these are also worker ants, but with one difference - a greatly enlarged head and mandibles. Such members are not in every family, but they are engaged in guarding the nest from enemies and hunting for other insects. In case of danger, the soldiers will protect the anthill even at the cost of their own lives. |
Ants Habitat
Ants can be found in almost every corner of the planet, with the exception of the permafrost zone. Their usual environment is humid, tropical forests, but these "guys" were able to adapt to life in a wide variety of conditions. To date, the greatest diversity of species is concentrated in such regions of the world:
- Central America;
- South America;
- Africa;
- Asia.
In 2013, one of the representatives of the ant family was discovered even on the territory of Greenland. It turned out to be a male from the Pharaoh ant species, which are notorious around the world as domestic pests.
The value of ants in nature
Some species of ants have adapted to life next to humans and have received the title of "pests", but they make up only a small part of a huge family. Most of these insects living in the wild do not particularly approach people. Ants mainly inhabit deciduous and tropical forests, where they are considered important members of the ecosystem and perform many useful functions:
- loosen the soil and regulate its acidity;
- predatory species regulate the number of other insects by eating them;
- eat animal and plant remains, thus accelerating their decomposition.
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The most interesting types of ants
The ant family includes many different species, but some of them deserve special attention.
Conclusion
Ants are amazing creatures that have been living on the planet for over 100 million years, and all this time they have evolved stubbornly, changing their lifestyle and appearance. Their efforts were not in vain and at the moment, ants are considered to be the most developed insects in the world.
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