Queen ant

A queen ant is the primary reproductive female in an ant colony; she is also known as the "gyna". Queen ants are responsible for laying the eggs that will eventually become workers, soldiers, and new reproductive ants (both queens and males).

Typically, queen ants are larger than other members of the colony. They also possess specific physical characteristics that differentiate them from worker ants, most notably the presence of wings before mating (after mating, they often shed their wings) and enlarged gasters (abdomens) for egg production.

The lifespan of a queen ant can vary greatly depending on the species, ranging from a year to several decades. During their lifetime, they can lay hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of eggs.

New queen ants are produced in annual or seasonal "nuptial flights," during which winged queens and males leave their parent colony to mate. After mating, the queen finds a suitable location to establish a new colony. She uses stored energy reserves from her body to raise the first generation of worker ants. Once these workers mature, they take over the tasks of foraging, nest construction, and brood care, allowing the queen to focus solely on egg laying.

The presence of a queen ant is essential for the long-term survival of a colony. Her death usually signals the colony's eventual decline unless the colony is able to raise a new queen (through the production of "virgin queens" or by adopting a queen from another colony). In some ant species, multiple queens can co-exist in a colony (polygyny), while others have only one queen (monogyny).