- A rare ant species, Temnothorax kinomurai, endemic to Japan, has been confirmed as the only known ant species to lack both workers and males, consisting exclusively of queens.
- For nearly four decades, researchers suspected this unique characteristic, and a new study now provides the first definitive proof.
- The parasitic ant reproduces asexually through parthenogenesis, meaning its queens produce clones of themselves from unfertilised eggs.
- Temnothorax kinomurai also exhibits parasitic behaviour, tricking workers of a closely related species, Temnothorax makora, into killing their own queen and subsequently rearing the parasitic ant's offspring.
- Scientists confirmed these findings by collecting colonies, breeding 43 queen offspring in laboratory conditions, and observing the absence of males and the asexual reproductive process.
IN FULL
Parasitic ant species where every individual is a queen discovered in Japan
