A single mega-colony of ants has colonised much of the world, scientists have discovered.Argentine ants living in vast numbers across Europe, the US and Japan belong to the same inter-related colony, and will refuse to fight one another.
The colony may be the largest of its type ever known for any insect species, and could rival humans in the scale of its world domination.What’s more, people are unwittingly helping the mega-colony stick together.
Argentine ants (Linepithema humile) were once native to South America. But people have unintentionally introduced the ants to all continents except Antarctica.These introduced Argentine ants are renowned for forming large colonies, and for becoming a significant pest, attacking native animals and crops.
BBC (via Houdinia)
My nightmares are true! Please, if they team up with spiders, let me die in ignorant bliss…
Yes yes yes, but will if affect house prices?
Proud to be argentinian!!
ants are creepy, especially the flying ones!
I will experiment with my colonies in the garden. I run into those all the time while digging the large pool.
Although, now that I think of it, I think this is not the type of ant they refer to in this post. That one looks more like the big one you find in other areas, more dark too. Mine are small and redbrown. Those dont sting that much (I had my hands in their colony so I know. The big ants sting more, I know, from way back when I was younger. The big red one for sure.
Ah, they speak also about smaller types in this one (???) huge colony …. In a way they dont make sense at all. Ehehe .. headliners .. Now then, how long dkid they keep them together … some will get along quite well for some time and then all of a sudden … no longer. What where the big ones hiding you might say.
Not that I really bother about ants from different countries getting along .. how about humans from different countries .. they dont even get along in one little town … or family … or relationship … ehehehe … if we’d check humans a bit more like they check the animal world ….
The ants here liked me … they stepped by in my house as well for a short period. I killed a few … so we’re not from the same colony I guess.
Ugh, I hate ants, even worse when they run amok in your house. But I’m not scared of them unlike butterflies which I have a morbid fear of…..
LC x
Lady Claire…
You’d better not watch this then… 1970’s hyperintelligent army ant sci-fi horror flick “Phase 4″
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3RFjpN6vbo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTv4WYHsncQ&feature=related
It seems it’s all coming true
Nope cockroaches win hands down in this department, not until you have been awoken in the middle of the night by a cockroach the size of a rat crawling over you in a very remote part of Asia do you think… hey Ants really aren’t that bad.
THEM!
(my ant was in that movie…)
@ Roz – You own an ant?
I, for one, welcome our new alien overlords…
Hmmm My little brother once predicted ants would take over the world. I do hate it when he is right.
Ladies and gentlemen, what we’ve seen speaks for itself. It’s difficult to tell from this vantage point whether they will consume Earthmen or merely enslave them. One thing is for certain: there is no stopping them; so I also welcome our new insect overlords. I’d like to remind them as a trusted TV personality, I can be helpful in rounding up others to toil in their underground sugar caves.
And most of them are in my kitchen. Not that I mind them, but they do seem to be digging the wall out with disturbing speed. Bless them. Now I\’m scared if I poison one lot they\’ll send their mates round