Here are some definitions that would be good to know!

Disclaimer:

Not all ant pages are fully finished yet only a few are mostly done, this includes: The definitions page, Home page, Species page, Camponotus modoc, Pogonomyrmex rugosus, Pogonomyrmex occidentalis, Formica podzolica, Pheidole bicarinata, and Tetramorium immigrans. Many of the colors and effects are placeholders and are not final. I am still working on this site and it is nowhere near done yet. If I got anything wrong like some of the information please let me know at cameronsantwiki001@gmail.com

I will also gladly accept pictures or information to add to the site. You will be credited if you provide anything meaningful to the development. Remember that this is my first big-ish project so be easy on me.

-The developer, Cameron

Claustral Chamber:

The claustral chamber is the founding burrow of a queen ant. It's what she digs after mating to start her own colony in. Once done she seals the entrance to protect herself from predators and other ants.

Claustral:

Claustral refers to any ant species in which once the queen digs her founding chamber she seals herself in by blocking the entrance. She raises her first generation of workers by breaking down the muscles that once powered her wings and regurgitating it back up to feed her larva. She only has enough for her first generation of workers. After it's used up the workers must forage for food.

Semi-Claustral:

Semi-Claustral refers to any ant species in which the queen digs her founding chamber but she does not have enough muscle tissue, or any for her first generation. She must instead must go out and hunt for her own food to feed to her larva. While dangerous it's worth it in the end since the first workers will be larger and stronger. This method is more common among larger ant species such as Trap Jaw Ants or Bull Ants.

These are some types of ants:

There are many different types of ants, so here are a few!

Nanitics:

Nanitics is the name given to a queen ants first generation of workers. The first workers are often smaller and not as strong since they have been raised off of the liquified muscle tissue of the queen. Unless the queen is a semi-claustral species.

Repletes:

Repletes are a type of worker ant that uses there own body as a food storage. Best seen in Honeypot Ants with some workers full of food hanging from the top of the nest unable to move. Not all species have repletes but the ones that do tend to be native to areas where food can be scarce at times.

Majors:

Majors are a kind of worker that some species produce that have larger heads used for cutting up food, defense, and digging. Some species also use there majors as repletes.

Queen:

The Queen Ant is the most important member of any ant colony. If she dies the colony will die to. The queen is the only ant in the entire colony that can lay eggs. Without her there would be no eggs being layed which means no new workers. The queen is often in some of the deepest chambers in the nest for protection. Most people think that the queen governs the whole colony but that is false. The worker ants are the ones in charge. Once the colony gets established the queens only purpose is to keep laying eggs. She becomes an egg laying slave.

Workers:

The worker ants are the main members of any ant colony making up over 99% of the population. All workers are female but cannot lay eggs, except for species that use a gamergate. The workers protect and clean the queen, as well as digging all the tunnels. They are also the only members that leave the nest to look for food and water. Without them the colony would fail.

Alates:

Alates are produced when a colony becomes mature which is typically 3-4 years depending on species. During the spring the queen will begin to produce male and female alates which have wings and are males also known as drones and the females which could be future queens. The alates don't do much work. They only eat and stay in the nest waiting to have there nuptial flight after rain.

Queen Alates:

Queen alates are the same size as the queen they came from with slight size differences. These future queens must wait until it rains during a certain time of the year to have a nuptial flight. In which they will take to the sky to mate with males from other colonies to then be able to start there own colonies.

Drones or Males:

Drones or Males are a type of alate that most colonies produce along side the Queen Alates. There only job is to breed with the Queen Alates from a different colony of the same species during there nuptial flight. After they breed with a female, they die, fulfilling there only purpose in ant life.

Mandibles:

Mandibles are a body part that all ants have. They use them to attack, carry food, break open seeds, cut through wood, bite, and much more. When ants use there mandibles they can bite down with a force of 300-500 times there body weight. Of course this varys by species. Smaller ants tend to not be able to break the skin or can just barely. While larger ants can break the skin really easily so be careful.

Stinger:

Most ants have stingers, but not all do. When an ant is going to sting they typically bite down with there mandibles to get a good grip on there prey before stinging. Ants that have stingers will inject a venom that can immobilize small prey or cause minor or large rashes, swelling, or even cause bleeding rarely. Most ant venom is barely felt by humans but a select few can hurt pretty bad such as Solenopsis invicta also known as the Red Imported Fire Ant.

Social stomach:

Most u-social insects have a social stomach. A social stomach is a specialized organ that is used to store food to bring back to the colony and feed the others. Some ants can fill there social stomach up so much that they basically turn into a balloon, and you can even see the fluid through there exoskeleton.

Spermatheca:

A spermatheca is a special organ that all queens have. The spermatheca is used to store sperm that a queen gets from mating and keep it viable for many years. With this she can continue to fertilize the eggs she lays so they can become workers for the rest of her life.

Nuptial Flight:

A nuptial flight is an event that happens in bees, termites, and of course ants! The time of a nuptial flight is different for every species, but they usually happen after a thunder storm or rain. They do it after rain so the soil is wet enough for the Queen Alates to dig there. The alates fly at dusk or dawn. The males breed with the female alates from different colonies and then the males die, finishing there only job in ant life. The queen alates however, store the sperm in a special organ called a spermatheca which keeps it viable for many years to come. Fun fact some queens mate with many males before dropping there wings! Once she mates she drops to the ground and uses her legs to pull her wings off. She then walks around looking for a place to dig her claustral chamber which is where she will start her own colony.

Native:

Native refers to a species that originates from the area it inhabits. They are from the ecosystem and are adapted to living in it with the natural challenges.

Invasive:

Invasive is when a species is introduced to an ecosystem through human activity such as trading or exploring. Invasive ants cost the United States of America over 6 Billion dollars each year! Invasive species can out compete native species, kill needed prey animals or insects, cause species to go extinct, and so much more.

Pheromones:

Pheromones are a chemical signal that ants use to communicate with eachother. They smell the pheromone trails with there antennae. Have you ever seen an ant trail? Well if you have there is a pheromone trail that the ants are following to somewhere. Whether it be food, the nest, or enemies.

Diapause:

A diapause is what ant hibernation is called. When they go into diapause the larva go into a dormant state where they don't need food and will not grow until it warms up. Before diapause the workers stock up on sugars lake honydew. The queen also stops laying eggs a few weeks before the diapause starts. Once the temprature begins to rise the colony will start to continue as usual like it never happened.

Polygamy in Ants:

Polygamy also known as polygyny, is when an ant colony has two or more egg laying queens. Most species do not tolerate multiple queens but, some do. Sometimes two or more queens of a species will start a colony together. However once the first workers arrive they will kill off all queens except one queen who is the most dominant.

Polymorphic:

Some species of ants are polymorphic which means they have different size workers. For example Camponotus modoc has major and minor workers. Larger workers have bigger heads used for attacking,  defence, and breaking or cutting open food. Not all species are polymorphic but quite a few are.

Trophallaxis:

Trophallaxis is a form of feeding preformed by many insects such as bees, wasps, and ants. Trophallaxis is a mouth to mouth feeding that occurs between workers, alates, and the queen. The mouth to mouth feeding is preformed between two ants that feed one another by regurgitating up food from there social stomach to feed others in the colony. This is done to minimize the risk of contamination when feeding the young and other members.