World

Ant invader ready to colonise UK

by Amitjha | December 2, 2008 at 10:53 pm

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Nature is full of secrets , the evolutionary trevd keeps on shifting and we humans finds ourselves always puzzeled.The main point is how fast or this evolutionary process should be, We are manipulating nature according to our need and in this process we disturb the natural cycle, this Ant is just one such example.

A recently discovered ant species may soon be colonising parks and gardens across northern Europe, including the UK, scientists suggest.

The ant, Lasius neglectus, was identified only 20 years ago after establishing a colony in Budapest.

Writing in the journal PLoS One, scientists say the species probably originated in west Asia.

A garden infested with them can contain between 10 and 100 times more ants than if it bears native European varieties.

"When I saw this ant for the first time, I simply could not believe there could be so many garden ants in the same lawn," said Professor Jacobus Boomsma from the University of Copenhagen, who oversaw the research.

Although superficially similar in appearance to the common black garden ant, the invasive species is very different in its behaviour, and particularly in the social structure within colonies.

This, the researchers believe, is key to understanding why it can invade parks and gardens and exterminate varieties that previously held sway.

The ants have probably been transported across Europe in soil used to grow pot plants. Colonies now exist in France, Germany, Poland and Belgium.

Although it is thought to have west Asian origins, its "home patch" has never been found.