There are more than a million different kinds of insects in the world, most of them lone insects; fire ants are social. They live in colonies and depend on one another to gather food, help build the nest, raise and care for their young, and protect themselves from enemies. Without the support of their colony, a single fire ant couldn’t survive for very long…
The bodies of fire ants, like all insects' bodies, are broken up into three sections: the head, the thorax, and the abdomen, with three pairs of legs and a pair of antennae. Fire ants can be distinguished from other ants by their copper brown head and body with a darker abdomen. The worker ants are blackish to reddish, and their size differs from 2 mm to 6 mm (0.12 in to 0.24 in). These different sizes of the ants can all exist in the same nest.
2007-10-13
17:44:29
·
3 answers
·
asked by
Katrinalii
1
in
Education & Reference
➔ Homework Help
Fire ants make a loose mound that looks somewhat like a gopher mound and does not have a single large entrance. If you disturb a fire ant mound, the ants seem to boil out of the mound. The most effective anti-predator adaptation of a fire ant is its multiple venomous, painful stings. From my personal experience, they are extremely aggressive and can sting multiple times. Some people are highly allergic to their stings, but for most of us, it just hurts a lot.
Fire Ants are considered pests and nuisances in the United States. In particular, it is to blame for major amounts of damage done to farm machinery. It is also a nuisance because of its preference to build mounds on lawns and because this connection with humans often leads to painful stings. In Brazil, these ants are a pest to the potato crop, eating the tubers and branches. Being neither a pest nor a benefit, it is considered to be a benign resident in Argentina.
2007-10-13
17:45:39 ·
update #1
For your information Ms. Sarcastic-pants, this IS my assignment. Please be serious!
2007-10-13
18:29:50 ·
update #2