Messor cephalotes, also known as the Giant African Harvester Ant, is a large, aggressive harvester ant species native to eastern Africa, particularly in countries like Kenya, Tanzania, and Ethiopia. In Kenya, two ant smuggling cases recently made global headlines. It's part of a growing problem with biopiracy and the illicit trade in wild animals. In Kenya last week, four young men were found guilty of attempting to smuggle ants. In two separate incidents, the men - two Belgians, a Vietnamese and a Kenyan - were given the choice of a fine of $7,700 (€6,911) or a year in prison for their misdeeds. The Belgian suspects admitted that they had the ants in their possession but said they were collecting them as a hobby. One of the men is a long-time ant fan and belongs to a Facebook group called "the Ant Gang." However the Kenyan judge didn't believe them. The Belgian men, both 19 years old, were found with 5,000 live ants, packed into 2,244 small plastic test tubes with cotton wool, in their possession in a guest house near a national park. The Vietnamese and Kenyan men met at the airport and went to buy ants together. They were found with 300 ants in about 140 tubes. The judge in the case described the Vietnamese man as simply a "mule" for the ants.