Currently, scientists know more than 14 thousand species of ants, but to this day researchers continue to discover new species. This time, scientists discovered a previously unknown ant during an expedition to study the biodiversity of the Siang Valley, located in northeast India. Entomologists found an unusual insect completely by accident — While exploring the forested area, they noticed something shiny. It turned out that they caught their eye on a tiny species of ants with a rare color — dark blue metallic, which shimmers in different shades in the light. Most likely, if it weren’t for such a bright and shiny color, no one would have known about the existence of this species for a long time.
A new species of ant has an unusual color — it shimmers with a metallic blue color. Photo source: iflscience.com
Unusual metallic blue ant
Scientific discoveries related to ants are always interesting, as these insects never cease to amaze scientists. For example, not long ago, researchers found that they can change the size of their brains, turn other species into their slaves, and their pupae give milk.
Discovery of a new species of ants — an equally interesting discovery, especially when it comes to such an unusual insect that sparkles in blue. As the researchers themselves report, while studying a hole on a cattle trail in the village of Inku, already at dusk they noticed that something was shining. Using a special device, scientists carefully placed two insects in a container, and to their surprise they found ants there.
Upon closer examination of the insects, the researchers determined that this was a previously unknown species that belonged to the genus Paraparatrechina. It was named Paraparatrechina neela after its color. The word “neela” means “blue” in many Indian languages. Thus, for the first time since 1902, a new species of ant belonging to the genus Paraparatrechina was discovered in India.
The size of Paraparatrechina ants does not exceed 1-2 millimeters. Photo source: wikimedia.org
The genus Paraparatrechina is relatively small. It includes less than 40 species of different ants that live in the tropical regions of Africa, Australia, and also Eurasia. It must be said that before the discovery of Paraparatrechina neela, only one species of ants of this genus was known on the Indian subcontinent – P.aseta. It lives in several states of India.
A characteristic feature of all ants of this genus is their tiny size, and P.neela, as mentioned above, is no exception — the size of the insect is less than 2 millimeters. Accordingly, these ants are quite harmless, unlike some of their other cousins, such as bulldog ants or bullet ants. Paraparatrechina live in a wide variety of tropical environments, from forests to clearings. They can be found both among fallen leaves on the ground and high in the forest canopy.
As reported in a study published in ZooKeys, almost the entire body of the ant is blue, with the exception of the antennae, jaws for capturing food and protection, and the legs. The ant's head is elongated. Its interesting feature, in addition to its bright color, is its large eyes, which are not proportional to the size of the head. The lower jaw is triangular with five teeth.
Paraparatrechina neela is the only one of its kind that has such an unusual color. Photo source: zookeys.pensoft.net
Why is the new species of ant blue
The very fact that in a large forest scientists managed to discover an extremely small ant is surprising. However, even more surprising is the color of the insect. The fact is that blue color is quite rare in the animal world, especially among ants, and «metallic blue» especially. As a rule, all representatives of the genus Paraparatrechina are yellow-brown in color. But what is the reason for the unusual color of the insect?
For now we can only say with confidence that it helps the insect survive in the environment. Perhaps this is a feature of camouflage or some other interaction with the environment. Unfortunately, scientists do not yet know the exact answer to this question, but they are working to get it.
Scientists do not yet know what causes this color. Photo source: zookeys.pensoft.net
True, there is a risk that it will not be possible to find out the cause of the color, since the ecosystem where the insect was discovered is currently under threat of destruction. The fact is that large-scale infrastructure projects are underway in the region – the construction of dams, highways, military facilities, etc. In addition, climate change is making its destructive contribution.
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But if these threats can still be avoided, and the ecosystem is preserved, researchers hope to find the reason for the ant's unique coloring, as well as obtain other information about it. In the meantime, there are more questions about this species than answers.