THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF ANTS

Learn About Nature's Most Amazing & Industrious Insects!

By Carolyn Pararas-Carayannis

Search Terms: About Ants, Myrmecology, Ant Types, Ant Species, Ant Behaviors, Formicidae Taxonomy, Ant Taxonomy

Welcome to the Myrmecology pages of Carolyn Pararas-Carayannis. This website contains information All About Ants, Ant Species and Ant Taxonomy - the way ants are biologically classified and ranked by scientists within the insect world. Biological Classification has a hierarchy of eight major taxonomic ranks based on original works of Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778), who grouped all known species according to similarities and physical characteristics.

As technology advanced Molecular Phylogenetics, which uses DNA sequences as data, the original works of Linnaeus were augmented to improve classification conformity with Darwin's Principle of Common Descent. Today's combination of biological classification and Phylogenetics belongs to the science of Biological Systematics.

Biological scientists and more specifically myrmecologists (those who study ants) utilize taxonomic rankings* to understand ancestral and evolutional relationships, biodiversity, and how organisms are related to, or different from, other similar organisms. The Biological Classification of Ants (Formacidae) within the animal kingdom looks like this:

Kingdom: Animalia, Phylum: Arthropoda, Subphylum: Hexapoda, Class: Insecta, Subclass: Pterygota, Infraclass: Neoptera, Order: Hymenoptera, Suborder: Apocrita, Infraorder: Aculeata, Superfamily: Vespoidea, Family: Formicidae, Genus: (there are many) Species: (there are many)(ITIS, 2006).about Myrmecology - the study of Ants. About Ants, Myrmecology, Ant Types Ant Behaviors

*Taxonomic rankings can be defined as the relative position of categories within the taxonomic hierarchy, with each subsequent rank below "kingdom" becoming more discriminatory.

Taxonomic ranking provide a structural framework which facilitates learning and enables us to study about ants and ant species in relation to themselves and other species in a systemic manner. For example, did you know ants are descendents from wasp-like ancestors? That is why their Family: Formicidae (see above) is classified under the Order: Hymenoptera (see above). The word "Hymenoptera", derived from the ancient Greek word "humenopteros" literally means "membranous wings"; and the Order: Hymenoptera happens to be the same order under which wasps and bees are also classified (family names not shown here). About Ants, Myrmecology, Ant Types Ant Behavior,About Ants, Myrmecology, Ant Types, Ant Behaviors.

Additional website specifics include comprehensive articles about various Ant Species: their characteristics, the kinds of colonies they create, class behaviors within their colony, how they impact their environment and their relationship with man. Pertinent insect definitions are provided and, yes, even ways for ant control are suggested, when they seem to overstep their bounds. Myrmecology, about ants, ant types, ant behaviors, Ant Species.

The informative and well-illustrated articles are written in an easy-to-understand manner. Most photos presented are high definition. Videos and diagrams of ants are chosen for their educational content and their ability to augment article text. "TID BIT" articles are informational thumbnail sketches of larger, more complex articles as well snapshots of interesting, related topics.

My aim at info-now.org/ants is to create for you enjoyable, academic and visual experiences about one of the world's most tiniest insects. ant types, ant behaviors

Thank you for visiting this Myrmecology portal.

To access information all About Ants - just click links on the side panels.

email