‘Ant-agonistic’: aggressive ants threaten Germany’s infrastructure

An invasive ant species from the Mediterranean region becomes a problem in Germany. It penetrates into houses, slows down the Internet and causes power outages. A research project is intended to remedy this.

On Friday, dpa flooded German editors with an ant-newsunami: An aggressive giant ant spreads in Germany.

The invasive ants Tapinoma magnum, native to the Mediterranean region, are spreading as far north as Cologne and Hanover in Germany, said ant expert Manfred Verhaagh of the Karlsruhe Museum of Natural History. "Their supercolonies number from several hundred thousand to millions of individuals," he warned, much larger than colonies of other ant species. The invasion of the Tapinoma magnum species and the formation of its colonies threaten buildi…

An aggressive ant species is spreading more and more across northern Germany and is threatening to destroy power lines and internet connections.

An aggressive ant species spreads in many places, in the Baden throat it already caused power outages. Now experts and authorities want to take action together against the animals.

‘Ant-agonistic’: aggressive ants threaten Germany’s infrastructure

The ants – in colonies with hundreds of thousands to millions of individuals – have also been noticed elsewhere in Europe, including France.