Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae within the order Hymenoptera, which also includes bees and wasps. They are characterized by a distinct petiole forming a narrow waist between the mesosoma and gaster, elbowed antennae, and caste differentiation into reproductive queens and males and typically wingless sterile workers. Ants exhibit complex colony organization with division of labor, cooperative brood care, and sophisticated chemical communication via pheromones. Their ecological roles include soil modification, seed dispersal, predation, mutualisms (e.g., with aphids and plants), and scavenging, making them key model organisms in studies of social evolution, chemical ecology, and community dynamics.
The ability to detect viruses and other harmful pathogens is highly advantageous for animals, as it can guide their behavior and prevent them from illness, and—in severe cases—death. When it comes to species that live in ...
Researchers at the National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology (QST) and the University of the Ryukyus have developed a new imaging method that makes it possible to see, in real time, how food is distributed and ...
Plants & Animals
Apr 29, 2026
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Nature is a riot of color. In the animal kingdom, many species, from insects to cephalopods, use their permanent color or change it for communication, camouflage, and thermoregulation. While this type of reversible shift ...
Bruce the kea is missing his entire upper beak. Yet he is the alpha bird of his circus (the apt collective noun for a group of New Zealand's famously playful alpine parrots).
Plants & Animals
Apr 21, 2026
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In the summer, many people turn to mosquito repellents to reduce the insects' buzzing and bites. One solution that has become increasingly popular in recent years is the Thermacell device, which releases vaporized, pyrethroid-based ...
Plants & Animals
Apr 15, 2026
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Drought significantly reduces the reproductive success of bumblebee colonies, according to a new study conducted by a research team at the University of Würzburg and published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological ...
Plants & Animals
Apr 15, 2026
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Ecologists have long seen a strong connection between biodiversity and pollinators—the butterflies, birds, bats, bees, and other insects that help the flowers they snack on fertilize by transferring pollen from male anthers ...
Ecology
Apr 13, 2026
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Ants are known for many things. They fight, bite and sometimes compete for every crumb. We can now possibly add cleaning services to that list, according to a study published in the journal Ecology and Evolution.
A large-scale experiment shows that warmth brings bees and wasps out of hibernation earlier—leaving some of them with poorer starting conditions. This is particularly true for species in cooler regions that emerge during ...
Plants & Animals
Apr 13, 2026
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Researchers at DTU have developed a new method that can reduce the time needed to find new bacteria for fermentation. They have now identified a bacterium that can be used both for acidification and to increase the vitamin ...
Cell & Microbiology
Apr 10, 2026
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