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Ants

Ants

Ants are insects of the family Formicidae and belong to the order Hymenoptera. They are thought to have evolved from wasp-like creatures sometime between 110 to 130 million years ago and then evolved after the rise of flowering plants. There are an estimated 22,000 different species, out of which only about 12,500 have actually been classified.

Top Questions Asked on ChaCha.com for Ants

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  1. What do Fire Ants eat?

    View as web page Fire ants eat almost anything, but primarily...

  2. How many ants are in the entire world?

    There are about 10,000 species of ants, however counting all ...

  3. Do ants milk caterpillars?

    When a caterpillar hibernates & pupates in an ant nest, the a...

  4. Do ants sleep?

    No one knows whether ants "sleep" in the way we do. They don'...

  5. Does mint repel ants?

    Yes, Fill a spray bottle with water and add approximately 10 ...

  1. How long do ants live?

    A scientist would say (data not available). Src: Wolfram|Alpha

  2. Do ants milk caterpillars?

    When a caterpillar hibernates & pupates in an ant nest, the a...

  3. What would I do if I had ants in my pants?

    You better hope that they aren't mad then! Roll and jump arou...

  4. A group of ants attack a cicada, feed on it, and kill it, even though it is much larger than the ants. Which kind of relationship do the ant and the cicada shar?

    Predator vs. prey relationship. CHACHA ON

  5. Zombie ants?

    ZQuote: [Ed] I'm sorry, Shaun. [Shaun] It's OK. [Ed] No, I'm ...

  1. Does mint repel ants?

    Yes, Fill a spray bottle with water and add approximately 10 ...

  2. Do ants milk caterpillars?

    When a caterpillar hibernates & pupates in an ant nest, the a...

  3. What is the purpose of a fire ant?

    Fire ants exist just as all life exists, for no apparent reas...

  4. Can sugar ants hurt me?

    The Pharaoh ant is the most commonly occurring indoor ant. Al...

  5. Where are ants on the food chain?

    In the insect food chain fire ants are at the top. They prey ...

Top Questions Asked on ChaCha Mobile for Ants

In the Last:
Day | Week | Month

  1. How long do ants live?

    A scientist would say (data not available). Src: Wolfram|Alpha

  2. How much weight can ants carry?

    Ants are able to lift up to 50 times their own weight.They ha...

  3. Do ants have a brain?

    The nervous system - the nervous system contains the ants mai...

  4. Are ants attracted to cigarettes?

    Ants are omnivorous and will eat almost any animal or plant, ...

  5. What is a group of ants called?

    A group of ants is called a colony. For most ants, colony lif...

  1. How long do ants live?

    A scientist would say (data not available). Src: Wolfram|Alpha

  2. Do ants sleep?

    No one knows whether ants "sleep" in the way we do. They don'...

  3. How much weight can ants carry?

    Ants are able to lift up to 50 times their own weight.They ha...

  4. Do ants have a bladder?

    No, ants use the Malpighian tubules (20) work with the insect...

  5. What is a group of ants called?

    A group of ants is called a colony. For most ants, colony lif...

  1. What is a group of ants called?

    A group of ants is called a colony. For most ants, colony lif...

  2. How much weight can ants carry?

    Ants are able to lift up to 50 times their own weight.They ha...

  3. How fast do ants reproduce?

    The average life expectancy of an ant is 45 - 60 days. I'm no...

  4. What household product will kill ants the fastest?

    The cheapest, easiest, most effective way to kill ants is to ...

  5. What threat do the ants pose to leiningen?

    The ants in this story are fictional, and because they actual...

About Ants

Ants have very distinct features, with their node-like bodies with a slender waist and their elbowed antennae. The species form colonies that vary from just a few dozen occupying a small space to larger, highly organized colonies that can have millions of individual ants. The larger colonies usually consist of sterile females without wings that form castes of workers or soldiers. The fertile males that occupy the colony are referred to as drones, whereas the one fertile female in a colony is known as the queen. The ants operate together in the colony to form a unified entity.

For the most part, ants have made their place on the Earth except for remote areas such as Antarctica. The creatures thrive in most ecosystems, likely due to their ability to work as a social network to modify their surrounding habitats while defending themselves.
Ant colonies have an unusual division of labor which is carried out by communication between individual ants and an ability to overcome complex problems within their habitat.

In some cultures, ants are even used in food, rituals and even medication. They also have the ability to damage crops and invade buildings because they group together and essentially take over the area they reside in.

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