Two ants, two species, one mother

"But in Sicily, a team found hybrid worker ants but no trace of the father. They suggest that the one species present, Messor ibericus, is able to lay its own eggs, but also eggs of another species, Messor structor. These offspring can then mate to produce the hybrid workers. This strategy conflicts with several conventional definitions of what a species is, which may prompt a rethink of these already blurry concepts."

"To understand how damage affects these bridges a team of engineers built a scale replica of a bridge section and monitored how it coped when different sections were cut. They found six distinct resistance mechanisms that allowed the bridge to continue carrying heavy loads even with the damaged sections. They hope these data will help fortify existing bridges and inform the design of future bridges to help prevent catastrophic collapse."

An Iberian harvester ant colony in Sicily contains hybrid worker ants despite absence of detectable fathers. Messor ibericus appears capable of producing both its own eggs and eggs indistinguishable from those of Messor structor, enabling offspring that can mate to generate hybrid workers. This reproductive arrangement challenges conventional species definitions and suggests complex reproductive strategies in ants. Separately, long-term human life expectancy continues to increase but reaching 100 years remains unlikely, and light pollution is extending singing duration in birds. Engineers found six distinct resistance mechanisms in steel truss bridges by cutting sections in a scale replica, showing continued load-bearing even when damaged. Briefings cover the chemistry behind divergent beer taste preferences and a deep-sea worm that uses arsenic to survive toxic conditions.

Read at Nature