"Empire of Ants" Documentary

• Looks at the difference between two wood ant societies

• Cold is survived as the heat given off keeps they alive

  • First days after cold, they clump together

• Supercolony: Multiple queens, dragged by the workers back inside the colony

  • In supercolonies, not all ants are related due to multiple queens

• Inable to collect food due to the snow, but ants can collect heat

  • The ants act as “solar panels”

• Late april: first eggs begin to hatch

Compared colony has one queen

• neighboring ant colonies are competing for land

• once first contact is made, they begin fighting and shooting formic acid

• Bodies of victims are taken back for food

• Why do not related ants in a super colony not attack each other

  Trophallaxis: stroking antenntee for food

  • Because they share super colony scent

  • Scent is what allows super colonies ants to move freely

  • Scent comes from spruce trees

• Symbiosis between aphis and ants

  • Ants stroke aphids to release honeydew while ants protect aphids

• Extra heat is essential but can be a breeding ground for disease

  • Use resin from trees to reduce fungal disease

Threats to supercolony

• other separate colonies

• cows

  • squirt formic acid at cows to stay away from mounds

Food sources for colony

• other insects

• spiders

Hunters surround prey and spray acid

In supercolonies:

Reproductives: have wings

Males: cannot feed themselves so will die soon

Females: struggle to fly due to enlarged ovaries

Year after year, virgin males and females head to a meadow to mate

Females release sex pheromones, and males hone in on females

After mating, females rip off wings because they are no longer needed

• Queens are investigated by members of the supercolony

• Queen is dragged inside, being accepted

• Sometimes, they dont even leave to mate, not taking the same risks as the single colony ants

In normal colonies:

• single queen will be killed by neighbors

• Queen will become a parasite and try and take over small ant colonies

• She kills lone workers, picking up scent

• Most queens are killed due to attacks

• Surviving queens take over and steal scent

• Once fed, the workers will now take care of her eggs