Member-only story
The Number Of Ants On Earth Will Break Your Mind
That's a lot of ants!
If you look close enough, you can find ants almost anywhere. Ants live on every continent except for Antarctica. They live in hot sandy areas. They live under manicured lawns, they live in trees and even live in cold, dry areas as well. There are ants underfoot nearly everywhere on Earth. The prevalence, and importance, of ants, have led scientists to ask the important question. How many ants are there on planet Earth?
A new study thinks it has the answer.
This study took samplings from 489 individual tests across all ant-populated continents. The samples looked at the density, prevalence, and rate of ants in certain areas. From there, scientists have done a masterful extrapolation job to try and estimate the total number of ants on Earth. Basically, they tried to nail down an accurate count of ants in a small area and then multiply that out to cover the rest of the planet.
So how many ants are there on the Blue Marble? A lot.
The Estimated Number of Ants on Earth
The estimated total number of ants on Earth is 20 quadrillion. That is a number people rarely hear. That number includes 16 zeroes.
