Tiny invader plays big part in ecosystems

APART from microscopic life what might be the most numerous things in your garden?

Weeds maybe, bees perhaps, or the lumbering snails and slugs heading for your plants?

The answer is probably ants. There are about 50 species in Britain, the most common being the small black ant. There are thousands of these busy creatures under slabs and plant pots, tending to their broods and generally exploring and foraging. Yellow meadow ants’ nests may also appear in lawns.

Although not generally too troublesome, ants occasionally venture into our kitchens seeking spilt sugar or other goodies. A loose marmalade jar lid resulted in a huge number of ants finding their way into my kitchen cupboard high up on a wall.

This reminded me that, although we think of ants as mainly underground creatures, most species are arboreal, foraging above our heads on trees and shrubs.

This time of the year is when ants become most apparent as they gather for their nuptial flights. Most often occurring on sultry, humid days, they are made up of winged males and females which mate in flight, after which the males die and the females return to the ground, lose their wings, and start new nests. Many birds are attracted to these swarms, swooping through them feeding on the hapless ants.

There are many lifestyles in the ant world. Some ‘farm’ fungi for food, some protect aphids from predators and ‘milk’ them for their honeydew, others have vast armies which raid the neighbourhood for food and to capture other ants, which become slaves in the army ants’ nests.

Many animals, such as ant-eaters, of course, and, in this country green woodpeckers, feed on them.

Ants have a profound impact on local ecosystems and are often described as a ‘keystone’ species. They disperse the seeds of up to a third of all herbaceous plants. So, irritating as they may be, try to tolerate them, their activities are beneficial both to us and their local ecosystems. Not for nothing are the majority of them called workers – they are indeed some of nature’s busiest workhorses.

Peter Shirley is a Midlandbased conservationist