Ant Adults and Eggs: A Description of the Insect Life Cycle

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Representatives of the ant family are widely distributed throughout the world. These insects are known for their strength, hard work, and surprisingly complex and organized way of life. Almost all types of ants live in colonies and each individual has its own profession and well-defined responsibilities. In this case, the number of individuals in one colony can reach several tens or even hundreds of thousands.

Content

How ants reproduce
- What are the stages of development of ants
  - Egg
  - Larva
  - Pupa
  - Imago
Conclusion

How ants reproduce

Ants can reproduce very quickly. The mating period of these insects is called "nuptial flight". Depending on the type of ants and climatic conditions, the beginning of this stage of reproduction falls on the period from March to July and can last from several weeks to several months.

Ant life cycle.

At this time, winged females and males go in search of a partner for mating. Once a suitable candidate is found, fertilization occurs. After mating, the male dies, and the female sheds her wings, equips the nest and establishes a new colony of insects inside it.

The reserves of sperm that the female receives from the male during mating are enough to fertilize eggs throughout her life, while the ant queen can live from 10 to 20 years.

What are the stages of development of ants

Representatives of the ant family belong to insects with a complete development cycle and on the way to becoming adults, they go through several stages.

Egg

Tiny in size, ant eggs are not always rounded. Most often they are oval or oblong. The maximum length of the eggs does not exceed 0,3-0,5 mm. Immediately after the female lays eggs, they are taken by working individuals who are responsible for future offspring. These nurse ants carry the eggs into a special chamber, where they stick several of them together with saliva, forming the so-called "packages".

Over the next 2-3 weeks, worker ants regularly visit the oviposition and lick each egg. The saliva of adults contains a large amount of nutrients, and when they get to the surface of the ant egg, they are absorbed through the shell and feed the embryo. In addition to the nutritional function, the saliva of adult ants also acts as an antiseptic, preventing the development of fungus and microbes on the surface of the eggs.

Larva

After the egg matures, a larva emerges from it. This usually happens after 15-20 days. With the naked eye, it is difficult to distinguish newborn larvae from eggs. They are just as tiny, yellowish-white, and virtually motionless. Immediately after the larva hatches from the egg, nurse ants transfer it to another chamber. At this stage of development, future ants do not have developed legs, eyes, or even antennae.

The only organ that is sufficiently well formed at this stage is the mouth, so the further life of the larva is completely dependent on the help of worker ants. They crush and moisten solid foods with saliva, and feed the larvae with the resulting slurry. The appetite of the larvae is very good. Thanks to this, they grow rapidly and as soon as a sufficient amount of nutrients accumulates in their body, the pupation process begins.

Pupa

The pupae are oval cocoons, yellowish-beige or light brown. In some species, the cocoon may be translucent or absent altogether, due to which the silhouette of the emerging insect can be seen. It is the pupae of ants that people mistakenly take for eggs, since adults often carry them on themselves. After 35-45 days after pupation, newly hatched adults of ants are born.

Young insects usually cannot get out of the cocoon on their own, so working individuals again come to the rescue. The walls of the cocoon are very dense and the "youngsters" are not able to break them, since its skin is still too soft and tender. This can be seen in the color of newborn adults, as their body is lighter and more translucent. After 2-3 days, the color of the young ant darkens, and it becomes a full-fledged member of the colony.

Imago

The adult ants that emerged from the cocoons can be divided into several groups:

winged males;
winged females;
wingless females.

Winged males and females leave the nest at some point and go to the surface to mate. They are the founders of new colonies. But wingless females are just working individuals that live for about 2-3 years and provide the life support of the entire anthill.

adult ants.

Conclusion

Ants are amazing creatures that are of interest not only to entomologists, but also to ordinary people. The cycle of their development is not particularly different from beetles, butterflies or bees, but in the world of insects it is very difficult to find those who will show the same amount of attention and care to their offspring.

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