Ant

Cosma / Communication / Knowledge / Realm / Terrestrial / Life / Animal / Invertebrate / Ant
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Introduction1

Inside the ant colony (Deborah M. Gordon, TED-Ed)
TED-Ed (YouTube Channel)

Dictionary

ant : any of a family (formicidae) of colonial hymenopterous insects with a complex social organization and various castes performing special duties — Merriam-Webster   See also   OneLook

Encyclopedia

Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from wasp-like ancestors in the Cretaceous period, about 99 million years ago, and diversified after the rise of flowering plants. More than 12,500 of an estimated total of 22,000 species have been classified. They are easily identified by their elbowed antennae and the distinctive node-like structure that forms their slender waists. — Wikipedia

Ant (Encyclopædia Britannica)

Hymenoptera: Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Bug Guide, Iowa State University)

Hymenoptera: Ants, Bees & Wasps (One Zoom)
Hymenoptera (Catalogue of Life)
Hymenoptera (WolframAlpha)

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Inspiration

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Inspiration

Leafcutter Ant Colony (Museum of Science, YouTube 360° Video)

Talks about Ants (TED: Ideas Worth Spreading)
Articles about Ants (Big Think)

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Innovation

Science

Entomology is the scientific study of insects, a branch of zoology. In the past the term “insect” was less specific, and historically the definition of entomology would also include the study of animals in other arthropod groups, such as arachnids, myriapods, and crustaceans. This wider meaning may still be encountered in informal use. — Wikipedia

Entomology (Encyclopædia Britannica)

Myrmecology is a branch of entomology focusing on the scientific study of ants. Some early myrmecologists considered ant society as the ideal form of society and sought to find solutions to human problems by studying them. Ants continue to be a model of choice for the study of questions on the evolution of social systems because of their complex and varied forms of eusociality (social organization). Their diversity and prominence in ecosystems also has made them important components in the study of biodiversity and conservation. Recently, ant colonies are also studied and modeled for their relevance in machine learning, complex interactive networks, stochasticity of encounter and interaction networks, parallel computing, and other computing fields. — Wikipedia

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Preservation

Library

DDC: 595.796 Ants (Library Thing)
Subject: Ants (Library Thing)

Subject: Ants (Open Library)

LCC: QL 568.F7 Ants (UPenn Online Books)
Subject: Ants (UPenn Online Books)

LCC: QL 568.F7 Ants (Library of Congress)
Subject: Ants (Library of Congress)

Subject: Ants (WorldCat)

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Participation

Education

MERLOT: Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching
OER Commons: Open Educational Resources

Community

Occupation

Careers in Entomology (Royal Entomological Society)
What is an Entomologist? (Environmental Science.org)
Entomologist (Future Farmers of America)

Organization

International Society of Hymenopterists
Royal Entomological Society
Entomological Society of America
American Entomological Society

News

Journal of Hymenoptera Research (International Society of Hymenopterists)
Annals of the Entomological Society of America
Journal of Insect Science (Entomological Society of America)

Ants (EurekaAlert, American Association for the Advancement of Science)
Ants (bioRxiv: Preprint Server for Biology, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
Ants (Science Daily)
Ants (JSTOR)
Ants (Science News)
Ants (Phys.org)
Ants (NPR Archives)


More News…

Phys.org - latest science and technology news stories Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine.

  • Overlooked Melbourne patch reveals 45 animal...
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    When we think about nature in our cities, what often comes to mind are parks and reserves—planned, managed and clearly marked spaces that support animal and plant life in our urban environment.

  • Zombies are real—just ask the parasites taking...
    on November 2, 2026 at 6:40 pm

    Zombies have taken many forms in popular culture. In Michael Jackson's "Thriller" music video, corpses climb out of their graves and perform an impressively coordinated dance. In HBO's "The Last of Us," a fungus infects humans, takes over their bodies and turns them into hosts that help spread the infection. Even Plankton has tried his hand at taking control of another organism in "SpongeBob SquarePants."

  • 400,000-year-old fossilized termite nests named...
    on November 2, 2026 at 6:00 pm

    University of Cape Town (UCT) researchers recently named a series of approximately 400,000-year-old fossilized underground nests of an extinct termite species after Calitzdorp, the Little Karoo town near which they were found. In October 2026, the research team returned to the town to donate a poster documenting their discovery to the Calitzdorp Museum, helping to connect local communities with the region's fossil heritage.

  • Werewolf mice, ghostly frogs and cockroach...
    on October 29, 2026 at 5:20 pm

    Around this time of year, elaborate decorations featuring ghosts, vampires, zombies, witches and werewolves adorn front doors, gardens and store windows across the country. But you may be surprised to hear that in the animal world, there are many real-life creatures with tendencies similar to those of the fictional characters in our Halloween nightmares.

  • Earwax is both slippery and sticky—this weird...
    on October 28, 2026 at 2:00 pm

    What has the consistency of both toothpaste and dough, can absorb twice its weight in water and still remain sticky, was used by medieval artists as a binder in paint and has been hypothesized by physicians to repel insects? It's earwax.

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Related

Here are links to pages about closely related subjects.

Knowledge Realm

Terrestrial   (Earth)

Sphere Land, Ice, Water (Ocean), Air, Life (Cell, Gene)
Ecosystem Forest, Grassland, Desert, Arctic, Aquatic

Tree of Life
Microorganism Virus
Prokaryote Archaea, Bacteria
Eukaryote Protist, Fungi, Algae, Protozoa (Tardigrade)
Plant Flower, Tree
Animal
Invertebrate
Cnidaria Coral, Jellyfish
Cephalopod Cuttlefish, Octopus
Crustacean Lobster, Shrimp
Arachnid Spider, Scorpion
Insect Ant, Bee, Beetle, Butterfly
Vertebrate
Fish Seahorse, Ray, Shark
Amphibian Frog, Salamander
Reptile Turtle, Tortoise, Dinosaur
Bird Penguin, Ostrich, Owl, Crow, Parrot
Mammal Platypus, Bat, Mouse, Rabbit, Goat, Giraffe, Camel, Horse, Elephant, Mammoth
Walrus, Seal, Polar Bear, Bear, Panda, Cat, Tiger, Lion, Dog, Wolf
Cetacean Whale, Dolphin
Primate Monkey, Chimpanzee, Human

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Notes

1.   The resources on this page are are organized by a classification scheme developed exclusively for Cosma.