Welcome to The Ant Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on PBwiki.

This FAQ was created because many people kept asking the same questions, and we had to give them the same old answers. Other ant fans and experts had the same feeling. Hopefully, this FAQ will cut down the number of common questions and answers. As new common questions appear through e-mails, message forums, and mailing lists, we will be adding them to this FAQ. We encourage anyone who wishes to contribute to this FAQ to e-mail the current maintainer with suggested modifications or additions.

--

Introduction

2024.11.30 Authors

2006.01.22 Disclaimer

2006.01.22 Foreword by the Authors

1999.09.10 About The Ants FAQ

1999.09.10 United States and United Kingdom Spelling and Grammar issues

1999.08.26 Submitting Stuff to The Ants FAQ

2013.04.26 Updates

2011.09.06 Revision History of This FAQ

2013.04.26 Acknowledgements and Major Contributors

2003.03.15 FAQ Notes

1999.08.22 Afterword

Questions and Answers

Queen Ants

2003.09.19 Where can I get queen ants?

1999.09.10 What does the queen ant look like?

2010.06.05 Why can't I order queen ants?

2002.01.10 What happens if I don't have a queen in my Ant Farm?

1999.09.22 Do queen ants ever leave their nests?

Ant Farms

2001.05.10 Where can I buy an Ant Farm?

2010.05.01 How can I build my own Ant Farm?

2001.01.21 What is good food for ants in my Ant Farm?

2010.04.18 Where can I get ants?

2001.12.15 How do I catch ants to put in my Ant Farm?

Identifcation

2010.04.18 Is there a way to tell an unfertilized queen ant (princess) and a male ant (prince or drone) apart?

2005.11.25 I need help identifying this ant or insect?

2010.04.18 What are the differences between ants and termites?

2011.09.06 Are there any good ant anatomy pictures?

Ant Facts

2000.01.07 How long do ants generally live?

2002.01.10 Can ants talk or communicate?

2001.12.05 What do ants eat?

1999.09.22 Are all ants female?

1999.09.22 How do ants clean themselves?

2000.07.15 How much weight can a worker carry and why?

1999.09.22 Why can ants (and insects in general) carry so much?

1999.09.22 Do ants get lost?

2000.01.10 How long for an egg to become an adult worker?

2001.08.13 Are leaves the leaf-cutter ants' favorite food?

2013.04.26 How many different species of ant are there?

2000.04.07 Do ants 'go to the bathroom'?

Habits

1999.09.22 Why are there winged (or flying) ants from this one ant colony?

1999.09.22 Why do ants fight even if they look the same?

2002.01.10 Do ants work all the time and do they ever sleep?

Extermination

2013.04.26 Why are ants coming into my home?

2001.01.28 How do I get rid of ants?

Miscellaneous

2013.04.26 What is this fuzzy hairy ant with a huge stinger I found?

1999.08.15 What is myrmecology and myrmecologist?

1999.08.20 Where can I find more information on fire ants?

2013.04.26 What about carpenter ants?

2001.01.21 What books are good to read on ants?

2013.04.26 What other excellent Web sites to find more information on ants?

2001.01.21 I have a few questions that are not listed in this FAQ.