Student Research Pages - The Ant Colony

Cover Ants - June 2011Meet the members of the ant family or members of the colony:

Ants are "social" insects. That means they work together to make sure they all survive. They don't live on their own. Instead they live in a colony.

Ant Colony
This photo of an ant colony was taken by Wing Chi-Poon at Lost Maples State Park. See how busy the worker ants keep themselves? (Creative Commons)
Worker ants:

Most ants are "worker ants." Colonies have more worker ants than any other kind. All worker ants are female, but they can’t have babies. Don’t worry! They do lots of caretaking! Their whole purpose in life is to take care of the queen and the brood (the baby ants).

Queen Ant
This is a queen ant.
Queen ants:

All colonies have at least one queen that lays all the eggs. Queens have bigger bodies than the other ants. Some can lay millions of eggs during their lifetimes!

Brood:

The general word for ant babies no matter what stage they're in (eggs, larvae, and pupae).

Winged Ants

Male ants have wings. (Photo by Charles Hedgecock and shared via Creative Commons.)

Reproductives:

These male and female winged ants leave the nest to start their own colonies.

Ant Life Cycle

Ant Life Cycle,
Photo TPW Magazine

LIFECYCLE IN A COLONY

Egg –> Larva –> Pupa –> Adult

 

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