wierd ant behavior

[daxling12]

I haven't seen much talk on this but has anyone ever seen ants "hunting" for a queen? the other day i was in the bathroom when i noticed a large amount of ants no trails just spread out going in one direction like ...tracking i was interested and started to look in the direction they were going and i saw a carpenter ant queen just sitting in the corner she is in a test tube now and after i moved her the ants stopped there hunt.. has anyone seen familiar behavior in ants before? it didn't seem like this colony was gonna be friendly with this queen either considering the size difference

[123LordOfAnts123]

Sexuals may form a large part of the diet for a lot of ants during prime times of the year; whether scavenging spent males or dispatching live queens, the latter either found on the spot or even uncovered from their founding quarters.

Here in Florida, I regularly observe Pogonomyrmex badius workers digging up recently holed-up Dorymyrmex queens, which often number in the dozens within a few square meters. I've also seen them prey on other Pogo queens who dare dig their founding chambers within their territory. Such behavior is almost surely a fairly common occurrence with many species. Most ants react fairly aggressively when contact with foreign males and queens is made.

Even a sequestered queen whose presence above ground has all but disappeared is not out of harms way. The subterranean thief ants (the majority of the Solenopsis species within the states) often prey on them within the false security of their founding chambers.