Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell

The World War of the Ants – The Army Ant

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Some ants evolved workers with oversized square heads that plug nest entrances and force army ants to abandon attacks.
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Some army-ant hunting columns stretch 100 meters and kill as many as 500,000 animals in a single day.
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Army ants generally do not fight one another. Encountering swarms pass through each other or withdraw, likely because constant warfare would eliminate fighting lineages.
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When army-ant scouts appear, some ants evacuate, carrying their larvae away so the colony can rebuild later.
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On land, ants alone make up about 20% of all animal biomass.
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About 200 army-ant species roam in nomadic groups numbering millions, without building permanent nests.
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A successful army-ant invasion can penetrate deep into leafcutter colonies, consume tens of thousands of brood, and leave severe damage.
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Leafcutter ants build enormous societies, with nests extending many meters underground and millions of inhabitants assigned specialized labor.
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Army-ant invasions often exterminate prey colonies and consume stolen larvae, preventing those colonies from recovering.
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From intercontinental supercolonies to urban cracks, war is a persistent part of ant existence.

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