For every human on Earth, there are estimated to be about 2.5 million ants — or 20 quadrillion in total.
There are 15,700 known ant species and subspecies. These six-legged creatures serve vital roles in the ecosystem, as they help spread plant seeds, accelerate decomposition and support the food chain as both predator and prey.
If every ant was taken and dried up, they would collectively weigh 12 megatons. That’s more than all the world’s wild birds and mammals taken together. It’s equivalent to roughly a fifth of total human biomass.