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Ant Queens Unveil Unique Reproductive Cloning Phenomenon

9/23/2025

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Summary

Story summary

Iberian harvester queen ants (Messor ibericus) can give birth to two different species, a phenomenon called xenoparity.
After five years studying over 120 ant populations across Europe, researchers describe this as a notable deviation in reproductive biology.
Queens clone males from Messor structor with their sperm to produce hybrid workers, prompting study of cellular mechanisms and implications for artificial cloning.

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Story summary

Iberian harvester queen ants (Messor ibericus) can give birth to two different species, a phenomenon called xenoparity.
After five years studying over 120 ant populations across Europe, researchers describe this as a notable deviation in reproductive biology.
Queens clone males from Messor structor with their sperm to produce hybrid workers, prompting study of cellular mechanisms and implications for artificial cloning.