A queen ant (formally known as a gyne) is an adult, reproducing female ant in an ant colony; she is usually the mother of all the other ants in that colony. Some female ants, such as the Cataglyphis, do not need to mate to produce offspring, reproducing through asexual parthenogenesis or cloning, and all of those offspring will be female.[1] Others, like those in the genus Crematogaster, mate in a nuptial flight. Queen offspring ants among most species develop from larvae specially fed in order to become sexually mature.
Depending on the species, there can be either a single mother queen, or potentially hundreds of fertile queens.[2] Not every colony of ants has a queen. Some colonies have multiple queens.
Queen ants are the only members of a colony to lay eggs. After mating, they can produce thousands, sometimes millions, of eggs during their lifetime. A queen of Lasius niger was held in captivity by German entomologist Hermann Appel for 283⁄4 years; also a Pogonomyrmex owyheei has maximum estimated longevity of 30 years in the field.[2]
- ^ Keller, Laurent; Gordon, Elisabeth (26 February 2009). The Lives of Ants. Oxford University Press. p. 191. ISBN 9780191580079.
- ^ a b "Chapter 34: Longest Adult Life - The University of Florida Book of Insect Records - Department of Entomology & Nematology - UF/IFAS". entnemdept.ufl.edu.