There are 12 million tons of ants on Earth! How did the scientists calculate this? This is still a conservative estimate

The smaller the animal, the more numerous it is, and this is a truth that everyone knows. But how many animals as small as ants there are in the world is anyone's guess.

There are currently more than 15,700 named species or subspecies of ants in the world, and a large number of ants have yet to be discovered. They are distributed in all corners of the world and have different densities in different areas, which gives scientists a huge problem in calculating the number of ants.

Recently, a team of foreign scientists has given us a reference after their research. In a paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, they point out that there are 200 million (2 followed by 16 zeros) ants on earth, and their total weight is about 12 million tons, which is more than the wild birds and mammals in the world!

In the past, when scientists considered this problem, they generally used a "top-down" or "surface-to-point" approach. In other words, they speculate on the number of insects in the world and then calculate the proportion of ants to insects according to the theory.

This time, the researchers used a "bottom-up" approach or a "point-to-point" approach. They counted and analyzed 489 similar studies from all over the world, covering papers from English, French, German and other countries, and aggregated data from forests, deserts, grasslands, cities, and other areas on all continents. After conducting this huge data aggregation and analysis, they inferred the data of ants all over the world.

Using new tools, even if the researchers use a more conservative method to calculate, the number is still 2 to 20 times higher than the previous results.

Calculating the number is not the final goal, the researchers also have to calculate the total mass of ants around the world, which is the key to measuring the role of this creature on Earth.

We know that all life on Earth is made of organic matter, and the most important element in organic matter is carbon, so scientists commonly use the concept of dry carbon to measure the total mass of a certain organism on Earth.

According to the number of 200 million ants on Earth, they correspond to about 12 million tons of carbon dry weight, also called "biomass" (biomass). The calculation here is only the carbon mass of the dry weight of ants, which is generally only about half of the ants' body weight. This means that if other elements are taken into account, the total mass is at least double.

What is this concept? According to the researchers, this is more than the biomass of wild birds and mammals combined! If compared to humans, the total biomass of ants is about 20% of that of us humans.

No wonder the famous biologist Edward O. Wilson once said that insects and other invertebrates are "the critters that rule the world," and seeing their biomass proves that this statement is not an exaggeration. There are also data that the total weight of the world's spiders can reach 25 million tons. So it seems that if you include other invertebrates, it far exceeds the impact of humans on the planet.

Ants can spread seeds, can be eaten by other creatures, and can help control the population of other creatures. Don't look at the tiny size of this animal, but it is vital to the environment of the entire planet. Therefore, this study is an important reference for us to recognize the importance of ants and to take necessary actions.

The populations of many insects around the world are plummeting due to habitat destruction and fragmentation, chemical use, invasive species, and climate change. If we do not realize the seriousness of the problem, it may be too late for us to wait until the "disease" strikes.