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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 ]
The reason for this behavior is the fact that army ants do not have a physical nest. The queens are thus absolutely dependent on workers to protect them. Another variation is found in species with multi-queen colonies, such as Solenopsis invicta. The males and virgin queens mate and the queens then often return to the parent colony, where they ...
[2] [46] Due to the queen's brachypterous wings, it is likely that the winged adults mate near their parent nest and release sex pheromones, or instead climb on vegetation far away from their nests and attract fully winged males. [46] [49] [50] Nothomyrmecia is a polyandrous ant, in which queens mate with
Ant colonies have a complex social structure. Ants’ jobs are determined and can be changed by age. As ants grow older their jobs move them farther from the queen, or center of the colony. Younger ants work within the nest protecting the queen and young. Sometimes, a queen is not present and is replaced by egg-laying workers.
A single queen ant establishes every colony. Large numbers of winged male ants and virgin queen ants fly to mating aggregation sites following midsummer monsoon rains. To found a successful colony, P. barbatus queens must mate with males from two separate lineages. One lineage results in ants that become the workers of the colony.
When males hatch from their brood, they will fly off to find a mate. For males to access the queen and mate, they must run through the workers in the colony. Males that are favoured are superficially similar in size and shape to the queen. The males also produce large quantities of pheromones to pacify the worker ants. [8]
Usually, these queens mate with one or several males before flying to the ground, ripping off their wings, then setting out to find a good place to start a colony. This is the most common place and time queen ants die, usually to other ants that take them as prey.
The queen is unable to bear the weight of the large number of males trying to mate with her, and will drop to the ground, with the ants dispersing later on. [198] M. pulchra queens are ergatoid and cannot fly; the males meet the queen out in an open area away from the nest and mate, and these queens do not return to their nest after mating. [203]