Tw Ants - Tumblr Posts
The idea that there could be any sort of connection between Athena and ants is actually quite fascinating.
There is a myth of a woman named Myrmex whom Athena was in a relationship with until she pretented that she invented the plough. She was then turned into an ant by the goddess. Furthermore, I've seen some people on the Internet claiming that Zeus ate Metis after he tricked her to turn into an ant, yet I cannot find any sources that state this version so I'm not going to take it as valid.
But the main reason why I like the idea of Athena being associated with them is because they resemble her to some extent. Ants are known for their intelligence and complex social structures. They built their own cities, farms, garbage dumps and cemeteries. They have 250.000 brain cells, which is quite a lot for an insects and also one of the reasons why they're considered some of the most intelligent ones to ever exist.
At the same time though, they are SCARY AF. They are the only animal besides humans known for domesticating other animals and keeping them as pets. They also have slaves. And they also kill their old friends after they turn into "zombies" (old story). There's also an ant speies where there are only females. They're not reproducing themselves through sex, but through a process similar to cloning.
Also, they can carry things 50× times heavier than them, so it would be enough for them to be the size of a cat in order to wrestle the shit out of you.
Also also, here's how ants look like under a microscope:

Anyway, I'm not sure where I'm going with this post, but Athena being associated and/or having connections with ants would be an interesting concept in my honest opinion.