Every ant is a queen in this parasitic species — and they reproduce by cloning themselves and hijacking other ant colonies
By Chris Simms
Published on March 3, 2026.
A rare ant species in Japan, Temnothorax kinomurai, has been found to reproduce by cloning themselves and hijacking other ant colonies. The parasitic ant is the "first known species with only queens," according to a study by biologist at the University of Regensburg in Germany and co-author of the study. These queens live parasitically in the nests of another ant species and reproduce asexually to create clone queens to take over other nests. The study also revealed that seven of the 43 offspring from T. kinomura, which had never mated, succeeded in coup attempts against T. makora.
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Every ant is a queen in this parasitic species — and they reproduce by cloning themselves and hijacking other ant colonies
The rare Japanese ant species T. kinomurai, which produces only queens, may be the first to produce queens without male workers, altering the balance of sexual reproduction versus social parasitism.