Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesIn two reported ant pairings, a newly mated parasitic queen sprays abdominal fluid onto a host queen, after which the host workers attack and kill their own mother. The parasite does not carry out the killing herself: the workers do, enabling her to exploit the colony and its workforce.
How the takeover unfolds
- A newly mated queen of the parasitic species enters a colony of a related host species.
- She approaches the resident queen, sprays jets of fluid from her abdomen onto her, then retreats.
- Host workers become aggressive toward their own queen, attack her, and ultimately kill her.
- The parasitic queen can then take advantage of the colony and its workers.
The report describes the spray as appearing to be formic acid. That is an inference, not a confirmed identification of the fluid’s chemical composition.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Which ants have been observed doing this?
The behavior was reported in two specific temporary social-parasitism pairings: Lasius orientalis queens entering colonies of Lasius flavus, and Lasius umbratus queens entering colonies of Lasius japonicus. In both pairings, the host workers kill their own queen after the parasite sprays her. The findings do not show that all parasitic ants use this tactic.
The Tool Desk
Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Why do workers kill their own queen?
The observed sequence supports the interpretation that the parasite’s spray induces an attack by host workers. The parasite retreats, the workers’ aggression escalates, and the host queen dies at their hands; this is different from a parasite directly killing the incumbent queen.
#1 Best Overall
The authors did not test a parasite and host queen together in isolation. Their observations support a role for worker attacks in the lethal outcome, but that experimental limitation means the precise mechanism by which the spray changes worker behavior has not been established.
How this differs from other ant takeovers
Parasitic takeovers do not all work the same way. In the behavior reported here, the host queen is killed by her own workers, and the parasite can exploit the remaining workforce. In other systems, such as some slave-making ants, an invading queen may kill or eject adult host ants herself. Those are distinct routes to taking over a nest, not evidence that the two behaviors share the same mechanism.
Rank #2
- Pocket Guide to Insects of North America
- Pocket Guide to Insects of North America
- National Geographic Maps
What the 2025 report found
Taku Shimada, Yuji Tanaka, and Keizo Takasuka reported the behavior in Current Biology, volume 35, issue 22, pages R1079–R1080, published 17 November 2025. Their report describes host workers killing resident queens after parasitic queens spray them with abdominal fluid: doi:10.1016/j.cub.2025.09.037.
What’s actually slowing this PC down?
Pick the symptom - the matching free tool is one click away.
Quick Recap
Best Value
Rank #4
Rank #3
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
