Guide to the distinctive ants of Britain and Ireland

The AIDGAP Guide to the distinctive ants of Britain and Ireland is a handy reference guide for naturalists and enthusiasts.

• Straightforward flow chart to identify distinctive ants from live specimens
• Also features guide to ant anatomy, including how to distinguish workers, males and queens
• Designed for use in the field: lightweight, shower-proof and rucksack-sized

Ants are among the most abundant animals on Earth, often providing important ecosystem services such as nutrient recycling, soil structure development and seed dispersal. Out of around 16,000 species in the world, there are approximately 60 ant species in Britain and Ireland.

Unfortunately ants have a reputation for being difficult to identify and so are under-recorded. But it’s actually possible to identify several distinctive species from living animals in the field. In many other cases the ant can be narrowed down to a small number of options for later microscopic examination.

This guide is designed for identifying ant workers: the infertile adult females that make up the majority of individual ants that you will see. Photographs and drawings show the key identification features, particularly waist segmentation, head shape and antennae. Two additional flow charts are included. First to distinguish ants from similar insects such as wasps. Second to show how to recognise workers, males and queens.

This guide is part of Field Studies Council’s AIDGAP series (Aids to Identification in Difficult Groups of Animals and Plants).

AIDGAP guides are accessible identification keys, suitable for non-specialists from age 16+