The nature of Australia is very diverse and poses a great danger to people. It is at this point on our planet that some of the most dangerous spiders and snakes live. Ants there, by the way, are also extremely dangerous and their bites cause the death of thousands of people every year. Thus, on the territory of the Australian island of Tasmania you can meet the so-called black bulldog ants (Myrmecia pilosula), which bite very painfully and release powerful poison into the blood of their victims. Toxic substances cause fatal anaphylactic shock in only 3% of people. Despite the small proportion of their potential victims, more people in Tasmania die from the bites of these ants than from attacks by spiders, snakes, sharks and other predators combined. Scientists have been studying these creatures since 1858 and during this time they have learned many interesting facts about them. For example, they found out that ants can move quickly with 20-centimeter jumps.
There are 90 species of bulldog ants in the world, but the most dangerous of them are Myrmecia pilosula
Anaphylactic shock is the most severe manifestation of an allergy, which without immediate intervention can lead to death. Shock can occur not only after being bitten by poisonous insects, but also after eating certain foods and inhaling animal hair or plant pollen. Symptoms of anaphylactic shock include swelling, redness, itching, profuse sweating, fainting, and so on.
Appearance
If a person is asked to describe an ant, he immediately characterizes this species:
- The body is divided into 3 segments, the head and abdomen stand out well.
- The head has long antennae, the whole body is covered with villi.
- Three pairs of legs, allowing the insect to move quickly and crawl to the greatest heights.
- Color – dark brown, black.
The anthill contains insects with different body lengths. The largest is the uterus. The fertile female reaches a size of 13 mm. The smallest workers are females incapable of fertilization. They grow up to 4 mm. Males are 1 mm larger, young females are 7 mm. A photo of black ants is presented below.
Black garden ants
Interesting!
During the mating season, males and females grow wings. This is not a separate species of flying ants, but just a temporary transformation. The males soon die, the queens look for a convenient place, burrow into the ground, and lay eggs. Within a month, workers grow from them and begin building and arranging the anthill.
Housing
Black ants build several types of nests. In most cases, it is a cone-shaped form, formed from a mound of earth, covered with twigs, needles, and leaves. The anthill has many passages, chambers, warehouses, and is divided into 2 parts. Large black ants spend most of their time in the upper floors. They live until the onset of cold weather. At the bottom, deep underground, they spend the winter.
The second housing option is old wood, stumps. Lasius niger ants gnaw wood and mix it with saliva. Used as a building material. The tree is formed by numerous passages, exits, and chambers. Long underground tunnels and mines extend from them.
You can see the nest directly in the soil, with holes, loosened soil without a characteristic mound. Lasius niger ants also settle under stones and branches. Insects settle in fields and vegetable gardens, but most of all they love orchards. Because of this, they are also called garden black ants.
Reproduction
The mass flight of young females and males from the nest occurs in June. Fertilization occurs in the air and lasts about a week. Each female tries to establish her own nest and does not return to her previous place of residence. If she fails to do this, she may return to the previous anthill.
The queen of black ants lives for about 28 years. Lays eggs every week. They are taken by worker ants performing duties inside the anthill. Then they take care of them themselves. Provide optimal conditions and turn over. Move from cell to cell as necessary.
Interesting!
After 2 weeks, larvae emerge from the eggs in the form of white worms. They are unable to move, feed on their own, and are blind. The future life of the ants depends on how the adults feed the larvae. Within a month, the larvae pupate and emerge from the cocoon as full-fledged young black ants. Some become builders, others become nannies and midwives, others become security guards, soldiers, etc. There are more than 15 professions in the ant family.
Nomadic ants
The second most dangerous species is considered to be nomadic ants. As the name suggests, these tiny creatures cannot live in the same place all the time and often move from place to place. There are up to 22 million individuals in the colonies of the African species Dorylus wilverthi. The body size of ants also reaches 15 millimeters, and their jaws, which are larger than their heads, give them a terrifying appearance. The colony's movement speed is about 20 meters per hour. At the same time, soldier ants walk along the edges of the column and are ready to attack anyone.
Head of an African nomadic ant
Thus, columns of nomadic ants sometimes destroy almost everything that comes in their way. It doesn’t matter who it is: larvae, adult insects, snakes and rodents - the tiny creatures seem to be devoid of a sense of fear. But they can’t really harm people. Yes, in rare cases, their venom can cause the aforementioned anaphylactic shock in victims, but deaths are extremely rare. But these creatures would clearly be worth adding to the list of dangerous ants.
Do you know who “hell ants” are and why they look so strange?
Nutrition
Large black ants in the garden find food for themselves, their larvae. Adults feed on plant juices, a sweet secretion secreted by aphids. To obtain food, ants spread aphids throughout the garden, providing them with the most succulent trees in the country. Behind it they collect honey dew.
Ants' habitat
Interesting!
Black ants keep aphids in their home in a special chamber. They provide her with adequate nutrition, tickle her with antennae, and receive a sweet delicacy.
The larvae are more voracious. They need protein foods. Adults bring them insects, worms, and slugs. These feeding habits make black garden ants useful and harmful. Insects will destroy small pests and spread aphids themselves, causing significant damage to crops.
Behavior
The garden black ant is a non-aggressive creature, but endowed with a sting with poison. They use their weapons during hunting, when enemies attack, or when danger approaches. The insects bite quite hard, leaving an inflamed red mark. For a person prone to allergies, an ant bite can cause serious health problems.
Interesting!
There are always several adults guarding order. In case of danger, they give a signal to the others and attack the enemy en masse. In an instant, a whole colony of insects appears on the foot of a person who steps next to an anthill.
An insect will not just bite. He will crawl freely along his arm and leg if he is not in danger. The slightest pressure on the body leads to a defensive reaction.
On a note!
In nature, there are a huge number of giant black ants that can bite domestic animals to death and cause significant damage to human health. This type of ant lives in tropical countries. When insects infest, residents leave the house, taking their entire household with them.
Why are they useful?
Black ants
The garden black ant is a real delicacy for many animals and birds. As the main source of food, ants are eaten by moles, hedgehogs, frogs, bears and other representatives of the animal world. Many species of birds also indulge in this delicacy.
This variety of ants is characterized by the following useful qualities:
- Improving soil structure. By building numerous tunnels for itself, the insect makes the soil looser.
- Saturation of the soil with potassium and phosphorus, which cannot but affect its fertility.
- Distribution of plant seeds. Ants play a significant role in the spread of plants throughout the territory.
- A source of substances that are widely used in medicine. The main one is formic acid.
Interesting!
Some bird species use the anthill to clean their feathers. They burrow into the nest to allow insects to fall on their body. The ants do not have time to bite the victim; the bird quickly crushes them against the feathers. Result: clean feathers and the healing effect of formic acid.
Despite the fact that the appearance of ants in the countryside causes many problems, their presence can be used to judge the health of the soil on the site.
Fighting methods
Ant control
The garden ant is not dangerous until it begins to spread aphids. If there are no aphids in the garden plot, there will be no large anthills on the territory of the summer cottage.
Control methods include the use of folk and professional remedies. The choice of methods depends on individual preferences, the number of insects on the site, the location of the anthill, and the number of individuals.
- Trees are sprayed with soda solution against aphids. To make the soda stay on the leaves longer, add soap and linseed oil to the water. It is necessary to spray every week in the warm season.
- The anthill is filled with a bucket of boiled water and a solution of boric acid. They practice the method of setting fire if the nest rises above the ground. They douse it with a flammable liquid, often kerosene, and set it on fire. It is better to do this in the evening, when all the working ants return home.
- You can expel all the inhabitants from an anthill with the head of a herring, placing it on top of the building.
- Bushes of mint, lemon balm, and calendula are planted in the garden. Black garden ants cannot tolerate the smells of these plants.
- One of the most effective remedies for ants and aphids is garlic. They rub it on tree trunks and tie them with garlic arrows.
- The trees are protected with trapping belts made of polyethylene. An adhesive substance is applied to them - resin, tar, grease. Or buy special garden glue against ants.
Insects are afraid of drugs in the form of a gel. It contains a broad-spectrum insecticide, fragrances, and flavoring additives. Insects eat themselves, carry poison into the nest, feed the larvae and the queen. Mass death occurs within 14 days. The most common remedy is Great Warrior.
Fire ants
In the USA, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and the Philippines you can run into so-called red fire ants. The length of their red body, because of which they were given their name, does not exceed 6 millimeters. These aggressive creatures cannot get enough of nectars alone, so they mainly feed on dead mammals, spiders, worms, and so on. The size of fire ant colonies depends on their diet. So, if individuals manage to find sweetened water, the colony grows faster. This conclusion, at least, was made by scientists during long-term observations.
Red fire ant close up
As a rule, red fire ants attack victims in a crowd and behave extremely aggressively. With painful bites, they inject the poisonous substance solenopsin into other organisms. The bites feel as if matches are being extinguished on the skin - hence the name “fire” ants. If a person is unlucky enough to encounter these creatures and is stung, symptoms include redness and swelling of the skin, nausea and dizziness. There are cases in history when fire ant bites led to the death of a person.
Head of a red fire ant. Consequences of bites
, but this is not the most pleasant sight
Fire ants cause problems not only in the human world, but also in animal society. For several years in a row, scientists have noticed an increase in bird mortality and in some cases they die from the bites of these particular ants. In areas with a high density of these creatures, many chicks simply cannot reach the adult stage of development. Birds that nest on the ground are especially at risk. And this is understandable, because predatory ants don’t even need to climb the trees - the food just lies on a “plate” in the form of a nest.
Ground-nesting American terns (Sterna antillarum) are often victims of red ants.
Humanity is trying to fight fire ants in all available ways. Creatures such as parasitic ants of the Solenopsis daguerre species, humpback flies and Beauveria bassiana mushrooms are specially brought into places where they accumulate, which are used to destroy dangerous insects. Also, in some regions of the planet, people try to exterminate dangerous colonies by digging anthills and then pouring boiling water or liquid nitrogen. In the second half of the 20th century, chemicals were used to combat poisonous creatures, but then it was discovered that they were too dangerous for birds and people.
Insects affected by the fungus Boveria bassi
