Although ants are tiny creatures, there is much more to them than meets the eye. There are over 12 000 species of ants all over the world, and being very versatile creatures, they are able to live in most environments and conditions. One of the most fascinating things about ants there is to learn, is how they can lift up to twenty times their own body weight! Imagine what an adult could lift if they could do that!
As I’ve already mentioned, there are so many different types of ants but the ones you are probably used to seeing are Black House Ants and Black Garden Ants. As their names suggest, that is where they are most commonly found. While most ants are harmless (apart from getting in your food and making you itchy), there are some harmful ants, with the bull ants being at the top of the list but as long as you keep out of their way and don’t sit on their nest you should be fine.
Ants live in colonies which are also called anthills as they are large mounds in the earth, structured by the ants with many tunnels inside of them. The number of ants living in an ant colony can range from a few hundred to several thousand. The argentine ants often live in colonies with around 10 000 ants. There is usually one or a few female ants in the hive (also known as queen ants) who lay the eggs and help the colony to grow over her lifetime, which is about 10 to 15 years.
Ants are extremely interesting creatures and I hope you have learned something new about them from reading this.
