There are no curiosities in nature. In hot countries, you can find anthills with unusual insects. They differ in an amber round belly of huge size.
These are honey ants (photo and description are presented in the article).
General information
These exotic and rather peculiar insects are adapted to the climatic conditions of hot deserts. You can meet them in North America (Mexico and the western part of the USA), Australia and South Africa. These places differ in a small amount of water and food. There are 5 genera of such ants, which are distinguished by their unusual appearance, reminiscent of amber jewelry. Liquid carbohydrate accumulates in these huge round bellies. This is honey.
Like other species, honey ants live in colonies, and each of them has its own size. The number of one colony ranges from hundreds to several million insects. These include the uterus, which can lay ina day up to 1500 eggs, as well as male and worker ants.
This detachment of ants got its name in connection with the food they eat - honey (or honey) dew. The source of dew is plant aphids. This type of insect feeds on plant sap, which contains a considerable amount of sugar. The excess of the latter, which is secreted by plant aphids, is the very honeydew that honey ants are happy to lick from plants. Usually, insects find such food on the leaves of plants, but in its absence, ants begin to “milk” plant aphids. They caress it with their antennae to release this important nutrient.
Description
Honey ants, as noted above, have an original appearance. A round large belly filled with honey makes them unusual. The rest is the same for them as for all members of the family. They have a small head with antennae and 3 pairs of legs.
There is another name for these unique individuals - barrel ants. Their abdominal wall is so elastic that it can reach the size of a whole grape. In this regard, the locals gave them another name - earthen grapes.
Features of insects
Honey ants are an ecological group that includes insects of several genera. They are able to store liquid carbohydrates in the abdomen of one of the worker castes.
Food for ants in deserts is not enough, so in their colonies honeyAnts are a kind of "storage barrels". They fill their bellies with nourishing juice so much that they are not even able to move around. In this state, they are hung on the ceiling of the dwelling (anthill) in anticipation of the end of food supplies.
When the other ants in the colony are in need of food, they make these pot-bellied "sweet-tooths" give them some juice. Fructose and glucose contained in honeydew provide them with enough strength and energy for life. In lean years in large anthills, where there are more than one and a half thousand insects, large accumulations of sweet dew in their abdomens allow them to survive.
Do not mind eating "sweet kegs" and the locals who catch these insects and eat them like candy.
Lifestyle & Nutrition
On the surface of the earth, this unusual insect is impossible to meet. Honey ants are one of the castes of familiar-looking ants. While still pupae, individuals attach themselves to the walls of the anthill, becoming motionless.
They eat quite a lot, and the rest of their relatives constantly carry food to them, the features of which are described above in the article. In this way, this funny sweet belly appears.
Honey ant breeding
Keeping ants at home is a rather original and exotic activity.
When breeding these unusual insects, one has to deal with many accompanying insects: cockroaches, flies, crickets, etc. In addition,it is also necessary to contain fodder crops that are familiar to ants in their natural habitat. Without them, it is impossible to get a full-fledged prosperous colony.
Things to do:
- Determine the desired variety of ants.
- Purchase appropriate equipment for terrariums and food insects.
- Find a queen ant (buy or catch yourself). More often it is acquired "from hands" from other amateur myrmecologists.
- Create the necessary conditions for keeping the incubator with the uterus (rest, darkness and a temperature of approximately 27 ° C).
- Purchase a magnifying glass, tweezers, a thermometer, a few test tubes.
- Make an incubator in advance.
Interesting fact
Another feature regarding the placement and size of honey ants. As noted above, due to the large size of the abdomen, these ants cannot even move, but are simply in a hanging position. But if for some reason the insect falls, its abdomen bursts.
