Ants, like all insects, have jointed legs, three body parts (the head, thorax and abdomen), a pair of antennae, and a hard exoskeleton. The exoskeleton is made up of a material that is very like our fingernails.

Ants are very strong, and they can carry ten times their own weight.  (Human beings can't do that!)

THE EYE

The ant has a compound eye made up by a collection of small individual eyes. That means the ant can only see rough shapes, not the exact shape like a human eye can.

THE JAW

The mandible (or jaw) is used to hold an object in order to carry or bite it. When frightened, an smelly substance comes from the base of the mandible to warn other ants of danger. The sharp mandible can be used as a weapon during a fight.

THE LEGS

The ant has 6 legs. There is a sharp claw at the tip of each leg. This is why the ant does not fall off when hanging upside down! The foreleg has a brush (see the pink arrow in the photo below) on the forelimbs which it uses to clean itself.

ANTENNA

The feeler is also called the antenna. The antenna can give a sense of taste from the smell or the touch of an object.

ABDOMEN

The abdomen has inside it the crop, stomach, intestines and poison gland. In winter, the amount of fat is increased and the abdomen becomes hard and thick.

PETIOLE

The petiole is the part between the thorax and the abdomen, like a waist. You can tell different species of ants apart from differences in their petioles.

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