The queen of the Iberian harvester ant produces cloned males of a different ant species to serve as mates for her daughters [1].
This discovery challenges traditional biological understandings of species boundaries and reproduction. By creating genetically compatible mates from a separate species, the queen ensures the survival and expansion of her lineage through a process previously unseen in the animal kingdom [1, 2].
Found in the Iberian Peninsula of Europe, this behavior involves the queen producing not only these foreign males, but also hybrid workers [2, 6]. These hybrid workers provide additional benefits to the colony's efficiency and structure [4].
Researchers first highlighted these findings in reports published on Sept. 13, 2025 [2]. The process allows the queen to essentially control the genetic makeup of the next generation of queens by providing the necessary male partners within her own colony [1].
This biological mechanism functions as a form of inter-species cloning [5]. The queen acts as a biological producer, generating members of another species to facilitate the mating of her own offspring [1, 3].
Such a strategy prevents the colony from relying on the chance encounter of wild males from a different species. Instead, the queen creates a reliable, internal source of genetic material to maintain the colony's viability [1, 4].
“The queen of the Iberian harvester ant produces cloned males of a different ant species.”
This finding suggests that the definition of a 'species' may be more fluid than previously thought, as one organism can produce the genetic blueprint of another. It reveals a highly sophisticated evolutionary adaptation where a colony can bypass the risks of external mating by integrating the genetic capabilities of a separate species into its own reproductive cycle.
