A versatile species of ant that can farm, forage and hunt cooperatively for food has become the focus of university scientists.
Biologists at the University of Sussex want to find out just why the longhorn crazy ant is one of the most invasive and successful ant species in the world.
One reason might be because the species is versatile in the ways it obtains food.
It can tend and “milk” aphids for their sugary secretions, just like many other species of ant, but the Longhorn also seems to be a very effective hunter.
Tomer Czaczkes and colleagues from Sussex and scientists from the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil studied the ant in Brazil to see how they hunted for prey.
The ants were also presented with dead and live termites and their behaviour was then recorded on video.
The researchers found the crazy ant has a specialised way of calling in reenforcements identical to that of specialised hunting and scavenging ants.
Dr Czaczkes said: “Some ants are expert farmers and shepherds, other ants are expert hunters and scavengers. The longhorn crazy ant is an expert in both.”
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