Bence Mate / Leaf cutter ant (Atta sp) female worker carrying leaf to nest, with a smaller 'minor' ant riding. The minor's job is to protect her sister from parasitic flies. Costa Rica, December. Highly Commended,...

Brian Bevan / Close-up of a group of Wood ants (Formica rufa) carrying a dead insect back to their nest, Bedfordshire, England, UK, August.

Brian Bevan / Close-up of a group of Wood ants (Formica rufa) carrying a dead Common wasp (Vespula vulgaris) back to their nest, Bedfordshire, England, UK, August.

Konrad Wothe / Leafcutter ants (Atta cephalotes) carrying leaves along a trail, Panguana Reserve, Huanuco Province, Peru.

Konrad Wothe / Leafcutter ants (Atta cephalotes) carrying leaves along a trail up a tree trunk, Panguana Reserve, Huanuco Province, Peru.

Konrad Wothe / Leafcutter ants (Atta cephalotes) carrying leaves and filaments along a trail, Panguana Reserve, Huanuco Province, Peru.

Konrad Wothe / Army ants (Eciton burcellii) carrying eggs on a trail in a rainforest, Panguana Reserve, Huanuco Province, Peru.

Bence Mate / Leafcutter ants (Atta sp) colony harvesting a banana leaf, Costa Rica. 3rd place in the Insects and Spiders category of the Terre Sauvage Nature Images Awards competitions 2015.

Theo Webb / Driver ant (Dorylus) large soldier guarding smaller ants, in Salonga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo.

Kim Taylor / Wood Ant (Formica rufa) worker protecting the nest by jetting formic acid from its tail. Endemic to Europe and Asia. Surrey, UK.

Solvin Zankl / Fire Ant (Solenopsis geminata) head of a major worker with mandibles used for opening seeds. Specimen photographed using digital focus stacking

Solvin Zankl / Jet Ant / Shining Jet Black Ant (Lasius fuliginosus), worker. Specimen photographed using digital focus stacking