A study estimates that Earth has about 20 quadrillion ants. That's 20 thousand million millions or 20,000,000,000,000,000
Image: Unsplash
They constitute about 12 million tonnes of dry carbon, which exceeds the mass of all the world's wild birds and wild mammals combined
Image: Unsplash
Interestingly, it is also equal to about one-fifth of the total weight of humans
Image: Unsplash
Ants are a crucial part of nature. They aerate the soil, disperse seeds, break down organic material, create habitat for other animals and form an important part of the food chain
Image: Unsplash
There are more than 15,700 named species and subspecies of ants, and many others not yet named by science
Image: Unsplash
Ants' high degree of social organisation has enabled them to colonise nearly all ecosystems and regions around the globe
Image: Unsplash
They are also distributed unevenly on Earth's surface. They vary sixfold between habitats and generally peak in the tropics
Image: Unsplash
This underscores the importance of tropical regions in maintaining healthy ant populations
Image: Unsplash
Ants are also particularly abundant in forests and arid regions. But they become less common in human-made habitats
Image: Unsplash
They also provide vital "ecosystem services" for humans. Ants can be more effective than pesticides at helping farmers produce food