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Biological System of Ants
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Biological System of Ants
Ants are a family of insects characterized by living in millions of colonies. There are over 12,000 species of ants belonging to family Formicidae.
Morphology of fire ants
Ants have a basic body structure of an insect consisting of a head, thorax, and abdomen. They have six legs with a petiole between the gaster and alitrunk. Their body is protected by an exoskeleton. The head forms the main sensory organ for communication. It consists of an antenna which is used for touching and smelling. The head also has compound eyes used for vision and mandibles for grasping (Gullan & Cranston, 2014). The male ants are considerably smaller with straight antennae compared to the queen that has a large thorax and head.
Reproduction
The reproducing unit of ants is their colony. They do not reproduce as individuals but depend on the queen. Queens reproduce a large number of eggs inside the nest, which hatch into larva and pupae. For a successful generation, they must produce both female and male winged ants. Few of the females become queens while the rest become worker ants that supply the queen with food. The male ants die immediately after mating. The social organization of ants is well organized with each ant having an inborn function.
Questions
Can ants distinguish each other’s colony when the antennae are removed?
Can worker ants fail to supply food when the queen is dead?
How are ants able to trace back their colony habitat when they go looking for food?
Are the foraging characteristics different in Ants’ colonies?
How does ants’ colony behavior vary for different environmental conditions?
Hypothesis
Null hypothesis: There is no difference in the foraging characteristics of ants in a different environment.

Alternative hypothesis: Ant colonies have different aggressiveness of foraging behavior in the different environment.
Reference
Gullan, P. J., & Cranston, P. S. (2014). The insects: an outline of entomology. John Wiley & Sons.