Alate
Winged reproductive caste from a social insect colony in its winged form
Alate (Latin ālātus, from āla (“wing”)) is an adjective and noun used in entomology and botany to refer to something that has wings or winglike structures.
01In entomology
In entomology, "alate" usually refers to the winged form of a social insect, especially ants or termites, though it can also be applied to aphids and some thrips.
Alate females are referred to as gynes, and are typically those destined to become queens. A "dealate" is an adult insect that shed or lost its wings ("dealation").
02In botany
In botany, "alate" refers to wing-like structures on some seeds that use wind dispersal. It is also used to describe flattened ridges which run longitudinally on stems.
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Alate”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- Dorylus helvolus, a, Seringveld.jpg by JMK, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Euonymus alatus6.jpg by KENPEI, CC BY 3.0
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