Mating frenzies, sperm hoards, and brood raids: The life of a fire ant queen - Walter R. Tschinkel

Summary

In June, following heavy rain, fire ants embark on a nuptial flight where males and females mate in a lethal frenzy. The successful female, now a queen, starts a colony alone, laying eggs and nurturing the first workers. As the colony grows, it faces brood raids but can usurp others, expanding its workforce. The colony's lifecycle involves producing workers and, once large enough, fertile alates for annual mating flights. The ants work together, defending and expanding their nest, forming living rafts in floods. After about 8 years, the queen's reign ends, but her genetic legacy continues.

Takeaways

• 🌧️ After heavy rainfall in June, fire ants (Solenopsis invicta) engage in a nuptial flight, a critical event for mating and colony establishment.
• 🐜 The nuptial flight is a high-risk period for alates, the reproductive ants, as they face predators and the challenge of mating, which is often fatal for males.
• 👑 A mated female ant becomes a queen, tasked with founding a new colony by herself, starting with laying about ten eggs per day.
• 🏰 The queen selects a suitable location, often disturbed soil, to build her nest, signifying her status by breaking off her wings.
• 🍂 In the early stages, the queen relies on unfertilized eggs for sustenance, losing significant body weight while waiting for her first workers to mature.
• 🐛 The first generation of worker ants emerges after about 20 days, taking over foraging and caring for the queen and brood.
• 🤝 Neighboring colonies can engage in brood-raiding, where workers steal offspring from other nests, leading to conflicts and sometimes the usurpation of colonies.
• 🔄 A defeated queen may join a rival colony, fighting to become the new reigning queen if successful.
• 🌿 Once the colony's population surpasses 23,000, it transitions to producing fertile alates, ensuring the continuation of the species through annual mating flights.
• 🌱 The colony operates as a super-organism, with ants of different ages performing various roles, from feeding the queen to defending the nest.
• ⏳ The life cycle of a fire ant colony typically lasts about 8 years, after which the queen's sperm supply is depleted, and the colony declines or is taken over.

Q & A

What is the nuptial flight of fire ants?

The nuptial flight is a mating event where thousands of reproduction-capable male and female fire ants, called alates, take wing for the first and last time.

Why is the nuptial flight a one-time event for fire ants?

The nuptial flight is a one-time event because even successful males who manage to avoid predators will die after mating, and for mated females, their wings are broken off to establish their status as a queen and start a new colony.

How does a new queen ant start a colony?

A new queen ant starts a colony by descending to the ground, searching for a suitable spot with loose soil, breaking off her wings, digging a tunnel ending in a chamber, and laying her eggs.

What is the role of the first generation of worker ants in a new colony?

The first generation of worker ants in a new colony is responsible for foraging for food and sustaining their queen, who has lost half her body weight by nourishing herself and her brood with unfertilized eggs.

What is brood-raiding and how does it affect a new colony?

Brood-raiding is a phenomenon where workers from neighboring nests steal offspring from a queen's colony. It can lead to the loss of the entire brood supply and the abandonment of the queen by her surviving daughters.

How does a queen ant usurp another colony?

A queen ant usurps another colony by following the raiding trail to the winning nest, fighting off other losing queens and the defending nest's workers, and taking over the brood pile.

What is the primary goal of a fire ant colony?

The primary goal of a fire ant colony is reproduction, which is achieved by producing fertile alate males and females every spring to continue the cycle of mating and colony establishment.

How does a fire ant colony function as a super-organism?

A fire ant colony functions as a super-organism through the division of labor among ants, with younger ants feeding the queen and tending to the brood, and older workers foraging for food and defending the nest.

What happens to a fire ant colony after heavy rainfalls?

After heavy rainfalls, fire ant colonies produce alate ants that take to the skies for mating, and the colony comes together to use the wet dirt to expand their nest.

How does a fire ant colony respond to a disastrous flood?

In response to a disastrous flood, a fire ant colony bands together into a massive living raft, carrying their queen to safety.

What is the typical lifespan of a fire ant queen and her colony?

The typical lifespan of a fire ant queen is about 8 years, after which she runs out of sperm and can no longer replace dying workers, leading to the decline and eventual takeover of the colony by a neighboring colony.

Outlines

00:00

🐜 Fire Ant Nuptial Flight and Colony Establishment

The script opens with a description of a post-rainy June day, which is the setting for the nuptial flight of fire ants, or Solenopsis invicta. This is a critical event where male and female ants, known as alates, take flight for mating. Despite the risks from predators, successful mating is a fatal event for males. The female, now a queen, embarks on founding a new colony. She selects a suitable location, ideally with loose soil, possibly farmland, breaks off her wings to signify her status, and begins digging a tunnel to lay her eggs. The queen starts with laying about ten eggs daily, relying on her own body reserves to sustain herself and her larvae. After about 20 days, the first worker ants emerge, taking over the responsibilities of foraging and caring for the queen.

Keywords

💡Nuptial Flight

Nuptial flight refers to the mating ritual of certain ant species, including fire ants, where reproductive males and females take to the air to mate. This is a pivotal event in the life cycle of ants, as it is the only time these winged ants, called alates, will fly. In the script, nuptial flight is described as a day of romance for fire ants, where thousands of alates embark on a potentially lethal mating frenzy, setting the stage for the continuation of their colony.

💡Solenopsis invicta

Solenopsis invicta, commonly known as the fire ant, is a species of ant known for its reddish color and aggressive behavior. The script mentions this species as the main subject of the video, highlighting their nuptial flight and the subsequent challenges they face in establishing and maintaining their colonies.

💡Alates

Alates are the winged reproductive males and females of ant colonies. They play a crucial role in the colony's reproduction and survival by mating during the nuptial flight. The script describes how these ants take wing for the first and last time, with successful males mating and then dying, while mated females begin the process of founding a new colony.

💡Queen

In the context of the script, the queen is the mated female ant who has secured a lifetime supply of sperm from her mate. She is responsible for founding a new colony, laying eggs, and leading the colony. The queen's role is central to the video's narrative, as her actions and survival determine the fate of the colony.

💡Brood Raiding

Brood raiding is a phenomenon where ants from neighboring colonies steal the offspring, or brood, from other colonies. This aggressive behavior is depicted in the script as a challenge faced by the newly established colony, where workers must defend against raiders from other nests, illustrating the competitive nature of ant colonies.

💡Colony

A colony in the script refers to a group of ants that live and work together, typically consisting of a queen, workers, and, in some cases, males. The colony is the central focus of the video, as it showcases the life cycle, social structure, and behaviors that contribute to the survival and success of the ant society.

💡Workers

Worker ants are the sterile, female ants in a colony whose primary roles are to care for the young, forage for food, and maintain the nest. In the script, the first generation of workers is crucial for the survival of the queen and her brood, as they take over the responsibilities of feeding and protecting the colony.

💡Reproduction

Reproduction in the context of the script involves the production of offspring by the queen and the colony. It is a key aspect of the colony's life cycle, with the queen initially laying eggs that hatch into workers, and later producing fertile alates for the nuptial flight, ensuring the continuation of the colony's genetic lineage.

💡Super-organism

A super-organism is a term used to describe a group of organisms that function as a single unit, often with complex division of labor and cooperation. The script uses this term to emphasize the coordinated and interdependent nature of the ant colony, where each ant plays a specific role in the survival and success of the whole.

💡Genetic Legacy

Genetic legacy refers to the passing on of genetic material from one generation to the next, ensuring the continuation of a species. In the script, the queen's genetic legacy is symbolized by the production of fertile alates, which carry her genes and contribute to the annual mating frenzy, ensuring the survival of her lineage.

💡Venom

Venom in the script is used by the worker ants as a defense mechanism against intruders. It is a key aspect of the colony's ability to protect itself and maintain its territory, showcasing the ants' biological adaptations for survival.

Highlights

Heavy rainfall in June triggers a unique phenomenon in the sky.

Fire ants, Solenopsis invicta, initiate their nuptial flight for mating.

Males and females, called alates, take wing for a single, fatal mating event.

Successful mating is lethal for males, while females begin a new colony.

New queens search for ideal soil to establish their nests.

Queens break off their wings as a sign of their new status.

Laying about ten eggs per day, the queen starts the colony's first generation.

Unfertilized eggs serve as nourishment for the queen and her brood.

The queen's body weight drops significantly as she cares for her first larvae.

After 20 days, the first worker ants emerge to support the queen.

Colonies engage in brood-raiding, stealing offspring from neighboring nests.

Queens may lose their entire brood to raiders, prompting a desperate move.

A defeated queen can usurp another colony by defeating the reigning queen.

The victorious queen leads a large colony focused on reproduction.

Colonies produce sterile workers until their population reaches a threshold.

Every spring, colonies shift to producing fertile alate ants for mating.

Alates spread the queen's genes, ensuring the colony's genetic legacy.

Colonies function as a super-organism with ants of different ages performing specific roles.

In times of disaster, ants form living rafts to protect their queen.

After about 8 years, the queen's sperm reserves deplete, leading to colony decline.

The queen's genetic legacy continues even after her colony is taken over.

Transcripts

It’s June, just after a heavy rainfall,

and the sky is filling with creatures we wouldn’t normally expect to find there.

At first glance, this might be a disturbing sight.

But for the lucky males and females of Solenopsis invicta,

otherwise known as fire ants, it’s a day of romance.

This is the nuptial flight,

when thousands of reproduction-capable male and female ants,

called alates, take wing for the first and last time.

But even for successful males who manage to avoid winged predators,

this mating frenzy will prove lethal.

And for a successfully mated female, her work is only beginning.

Having secured a lifetime supply of sperm from her departed mate,

our new queen must now single-handedly start an entire colony.

Descending to the ground,

she searches for a suitable spot to build her nest.

Ideally, she can find somewhere with loose, easy-to-dig soil—

like farmland already disturbed by human activity.

Once she finds the perfect spot, she breaks off her wings—

creating the stubs that establish her royal status.

Then, she starts digging a descending tunnel ending in a chamber.

Here the queen begins laying her eggs, about ten per day,

and the first larvae hatch within a week.

Over the next three weeks,

the new queen relies on a separate batch of unfertilized eggs

to nourish both herself and her brood,

losing half her body weight in the process.

Thankfully, after about 20 days,

these larvae grow into the first generation of workers,

ready to forage for food and sustain their shrunken queen.

Her daughters will have to work quickly though—

returning their mother to good health is urgent.

In the surrounding area,

dozens of neighboring queens are building their own ant armies.

These colonies have peacefully coexisted so far,

but once workers appear,

a phenomenon known as brood-raiding begins.

Workers from nests up to several meters away

begin to steal offspring from our queen.

Our colony retaliates,

but new waves of raiders from even further away

overwhelm the workers.

Within hours, the raiders have taken our queen’s entire brood supply

to the largest nearby nest—

and the queen’s surviving daughters abandon her.

Chasing her last chance of survival,

the queen follows the raiding trail to the winning nest.

She fends off other losing queens and the defending nest’s workers,

fighting her way to the top of the brood pile.

Her daughters help their mother succeed where other queens fail—

defeating the reigning monarch, and usurping the brood pile.

Eventually, all the remaining challengers fail,

until only one queen— and one brood pile— remains.

Now presiding over several hundred workers in the neighborhood’s largest nest,

our victorious queen begins aiding her colony in its primary goal:

reproduction.

For the next several years, the colony only produces sterile workers.

But once their population exceeds about 23,000,

it changes course.

From now on, every spring,

the colony will produce fertile alate males and females.

The colony spawns these larger ants throughout the early summer,

and returns to worker production in the fall.

After heavy rainfalls, these alates take to the skies,

and spread their queen’s genes up to a couple hundred meters downwind.

But to contribute to this annual mating frenzy,

the colony must continue to thrive as one massive super-organism.

Every day, younger ants feed the queen and tend to the brood,

while older workers forage for food and defend the nest.

When intruders strike,

these older warriors fend them off using poisonous venom.

After rainfalls, the colony comes together,

using the wet dirt to expand their nest.

And when a disastrous flood drowns their home,

the sisters band together into a massive living raft—

carrying their queen to safety.

But no matter how resilient,

the life of a colony must come to an end.

After about 8 years, our queen runs out of sperm

and can no longer replace dying workers.

The nest’s population dwindles, and eventually,

they’re taken over by a neighboring colony.

Our queen’s reign is over, but her genetic legacy lives on.