What’s Earth’s dominant species by mass?

You might have heard that all the ants in the world weigh as much combined as all the humans. That isn’t true. We outweigh ants 5 to 1.1 Termites might have us beat, though.2 Either way, it’s not really a fair comparison. There are thousands of species of ants and termites, and just one species of human. But if we’re judging each species based on how much total mass they have – that is, by its “biomass” – who actually comes out on top? Turns out there are some surprising winners. Antarctic Krill: 379 million tonnes Let’s start with our division: animals. Humans are pretty close to the top for a single species, weighing in at about 350 million metric tons.3 The top-placing wild species is Antarctic krill, with a 2009 estimate placing them at 379 million metric tons. Each individual krill weighs only about 2 grams or 0.07 ounces, but their sheer population in the Southern Ocean puts them in a statistical dead heat with us – and keeps gigantic blue whales comfortably fed. But both humans…

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