Ants Insects Small Work Jungle

Along with the closely related wasps and bees, ants are eusocial members of the family Formicide in the order Hymenoptera. In the Cretaceous era, vespoid wasp forebears gave rise to ants. Of an estimated 22,000 species, more than 13,800 have been classified. Their geniculate (elbowed) antennae and the characteristic node-like structure that forms their slim waists make them instantly recognizable.