Dangerous Asian needle ant detected for first time in Germany

The Asian needle ant - whose sting can trigger an allergic and sometimes life-threatening shock - has been discovered in a park in the German city of Stuttgart, scientists said on Friday.

The Senckenberg Society for Nature Research in Frankfurt and Stuttgart's University of Hohenheim said the discovery marks the first confirmed sighting of the species, Brachyponera chinensis, in Germany.

"The insects are classified by the European Union as particularly problematic because of their possible harmful effects and their potentially allergy-triggering stings," experts at the Senckenberg Society said. The species was upgraded to the EU's highest danger category last year.

Student reported find at Stuttgart zoo

Researchers said they came across evidence of the ant in Stuttgart's Rosensteinpark last June.

"We were able to discover a complete colony of the Asian needle ant with offspring in the park," said Brendon Boudinot of the Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum in Frankfurt.

"This shows that these are not just individually introduced animals but very likely a local population capable of overwintering."

Boudinot is the lead author of a study on the first detection in Germany, which has now been published in the scientific journal Zootaxa. One of the co-authors, Stuttgart biology student Max Härtel, had discovered and identified a specimen of the Asian needle ant shortly before this at Stuttgart's Wilhelma Zoo, according to the University of Hohenheim.

The Asian needle ant originally comes from East Asia. In Europe, the species was found in Naples in 2020, among other places.

Invasive ants cause significant damage worldwide. They can affect public green spaces and private gardens, attack livestock and protected species and alter entire habitats.

The animals are often spread unnoticed, for example via the international plant trade, in containers or in travellers' luggage. The spread of these species is also encouraged by rising temperatures as a result of climate change.