The next time an inquisitive four-year-old asks how many ants there are on Earth, you can be ready to fire back a specific number. Researchers in Germany have scoured the scientific literature to come up with an answer to that question, as well as the inevitable follow-up – how much do they all weigh combined?

The scientists, from Julius Maximilians University (JMU), say they started the study because there hadn’t been a reliable estimate of the total number of ants on the planet, or how common they were in different habitats. So the team took on the momentous task of counting up these industrious little insects themselves.

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It wasn’t just a matter of taking an abacus around to every anthill on the planet. Instead, they consulted 489 scientific studies discussing the matter, covering all continents and habitats, and from that data they calculated what they say is a conservative empirical estimate.

Read more: New Atlas