Officials make startling discovery hidden inside test tubes and syringes at airport: 'Calculated attempt to bypass security systems'

Officials from the Kenya Wildlife Service discovered that four men were smuggling giant African harvester ants out of the country in test tubes and syringes last month.

What's happening?

According to the Times of India, the KWS seized at least 5,000 ants at a Nairobi airport in test tubes and syringes.

The KWS also called this act a "calculated attempt to bypass security systems" to the BBC. There were pieces of cotton wool, each containing two or three ants, in each container. The ants are worth around $220 each in the U.K.

KWS officials believe the men would have introduced the ants to the exotic pet market. Pat Stanchev, the general manager of insect-dealing website Best Ants UK, told the BBC that the ants' "big and beautiful size" is appealing to collectors who enjoy watching ants build colonies.

Why is this act of ant smuggling important?

When ants are taken out of the ecosystem, it causes a huge domino effect. It's more than just smuggling, especially to Erustus Kanga, the director general of KWS.

In a statement quoted by Reuters, he said: "We're seeing organized crime syndicates diversify from traditional ivory poaching to target our entire biodiversity — from medicinal plants, insects to micro-organisms."

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Ants are important to their local ecosystems because of how they aerate soil, improve soil nutrients, and disperse seeds within soil, per ThoughtCo. When we take ants out of the equation, we risk jeopardizing our food supply chains.

The four men involved also took queen ants from their environment. Reuters said that by removing queens specifically, they also endangered ant populations from producing since queen ants are the only ants that can lay eggs and produce more ants.

What's being done about the ant smuggling?

The KWS is taking this case seriously to prevent copycat cases from happening.

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The organization told the BBC: "This prosecution sends a strong message that Kenya will enforce compliance… and marks a significant step forward in Kenya's fight against unconventional wildlife crimes."