Roadside rescue mission for England's rarest ants

19 October 2018

Image caption,
The narrow-headed ant is England's rarest ant

It's not every day you'd expect to drive past an animal on the verge of extinction... But that's what people in Devon do as they regularly pass a colony of the rare narrow-headed ants on a small patch of roadside.

These miniature heroes play an important role in the UK's ecosystem and surrounding wildlife. Now, wildlife charities and the government are working together to save the last colony of this super-rare ant.

They want to protect road verges which can be used to connect habitats with the wider landscape, allowing plants and animals to move around and become stronger.

Highways England ecologist Leo Gubert explained that these ants "are so endangered every nest counts. As more areas of wildlife habitat are lost a wide variety of insects, plant and mammals are finding a safe haven on our roadside verges and by ensuring our network is as wildlife friendly as possible and by enhancing habitats alongside our roads, we might, ultimately, be able to contribute to the halt of biodiversity loss in the UK."

Buglife

These ants are at risk of dying out so groups are working to conserve them as part of a big project to save the local wildlife.

Narrow-headed ant facts

You can identify the Narrow-headed ant by the deep notch at the back of its head.
When attacking prey or if threatened, they have a secret weapon - acid! A gland in their abdomen produces formic acid, which they can fire up to 10cm, with great accuracy.
The narrow-headed ant lives at woodland edges, heathlands and open areas within forests, and is associated with areas of forest regeneration.
High territorial narrow-headed ants stalk other invertebrates, and will cooperate to take prey larger than themselves.
They have also been known to jump on the backs of other species of ants and rip their heads off.
This ant once lived throughout the UK, including the New Forest, Dorset, the Isle of Wight and Cornwall.

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