Stats

Lifespan: Colony: years
Size: Small
Diet: Omnivore
Activity: Cathemeral
Social: Colonial
Biome: Tropical & temperate
Range: Worldwide
Movement: Walking
Breeding: Egg-laying
Defense: Biting
Status: Common

About

Big-headed ants are a huge, globally widespread genus of small soil-nesting ants named for their 'major' soldier caste, whose oversized heads and powerful jaws crush seeds and defend the colony. The far more numerous 'minor' workers do the foraging and brood care.

Life cycle

1.
egg
A small egg is laid on or near the larval food source and hatches within days or weeks.
2.
juvenile
An immature insect feeds and molts, growing through successive instars.
3.
subadult
A near-adult insect has wing buds or near-mature form, one molt away from full size.
4.
adult
Fully grown, with full wings and adult coloration.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Hymenoptera
Family: Formicidae
Genus: Pheidole