Abstract:
This article analyzes the descriptions of ants made by Spanish and Portuguese settlers in the New World in the 16th century. Memories, letters, treatises and chronicles written by the settlers and missionaries were used as documentary sources. From these reports, the fascination of the colonizers with the organization and diversity of ants, the emergence of overpopulation of these insects and the relationship of this phenomenon with European agricultural cultures are analyzed. The techniques and tactics used to combat such insects, their therapeutic use, and their relationship with the army ants are also analyzed. This group of insects was probably the one that most competed with Europeans for environmental dominance, and the investigating of relationship between the two allows us to deepen our understanding of the colonization process in America.
Keywords:
Ants; New World; 16th century