Honey Bee vs Arctic Ant

Side-by-side species comparison

Attribute Honey Bee Arctic Ant
Scientific Name Apis mellifera Leptothorax acervorum
Order Hymenoptera Hymenoptera
Family Apidae Formicidae
Size 12-15 mm 2-4 mm
Habitat Heathland Forests
Diet Nectar Feeders Scavengers
Regions Worldwide Scandinavia, Finland, northern Russia, subarctic Canada, Alaska
Conservation Least Concern Least Concern

Honey Bee

The worlds most important pollinator. Lives in complex colonies of up to 80,000 individuals with a single queen. Communicates food locations through the waggle dance.

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Did You Know?

A honey bee must visit about 2 million flowers and fly over 88,000 km — equivalent to circling the Earth twice — to produce just one pound of honey.

Arctic Ant

A tiny, reddish-brown ant that forms small colonies under stones and in wood crevices in boreal and subarctic regions. Colonies are small, often containing fewer than 100 workers. It is one of the most cold-tolerant ant species.

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Did You Know?

This ant can survive being frozen at temperatures down to minus 20 degrees Celsius by producing glycerol as a natural antifreeze.