Home / Ants / Queen Ants

Queen Ants

All ant species are social insects, living in large cooperative groups called ant colonies. Two or more generations may overlap in a colony. These ant colonies are divided into three castes--males, worker and queens--and each caste performs certain tasks. Ant species that have more than one queen in their nests are called polygynous. Colonies with only one egg-laying queen are known as monogynous. In ant species worldwide, polygynous queen ants are more common than monogynous ants.

Queen ants and males are part of the reproductive castes. They are the most important members of a colony because they ensure the survival of their species. Queen ants, regardless of species, are larger than other members of their colonies. Queen ants also have thicker bodies, making them easily distinguishable. The abdomens of queen ants are larger than those of other ants, and they possess wing muscles specific to their caste.

The majority of queen ants' eggs grow up to become wingless, sterile female ants, or workers. Occasionally, swarms of new winged males and future queen ants are produced to mate. After mating, males die and in many species females shed their wings, going on to establish new colonies. Queen ants do not forage, and to keep them from hunger, they use the proteins from their decaying flight muscles as a food reserve. When a colony's first brood develops into adults, they retrieve food for their queens.

In some species queen ants can live up to fifteen years and are the longest living of the three castes. They are able to produce thousands of eggs during one lifetime, making it common for one colony to contain over 75,000 ants at a time. However, if a queen dies and does not have a younger queen to replace her, the colony also perishes.