Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The food is first ground to a bread-like consistency using the ants' large mandibles, and is then stored in a granary, assuring the colony access to food year-round. Seed collection on behalf of the red harvester ants benefits their ecosystem through the process of myrmecochory , in which ants aid in the dispersal of seeds while foraging for food.
The queen is semi-claustral, meaning that during the founding of the new colony, the queen has to forage so that she has enough food to raise her brood. [4] [18] Colonies have between 400 and 1200 individuals and are thus considered to be "large" colonies. The worker and scout M. nigrocincta ants use pheromones for communication. [5]
[19] [20] Invasive ant species can also maintain seed dispersal in their introduced range, as is the case with the red fire ant in the Southeastern United States. [21] Some invasive ants are also seed-disperses in their native range, such as the European fire ant, and can act as a high-quality disperser in their introduced range [22]
Leptothorax acervorum is a small red ant [1] [6] Similar to other ants, L. acercorum displays geniculate (elbowed) antennae, metapleural glands, and a constriction of the second abdominal segment. The exoskeleton provides a protecting casing of the body, which can be divided into 3 segments: the head, mesosoma, and metasoma. [ 7 ]
These red ants construct their nests on the undersides of mango tree (Mangifera indica) and coconut palm (Cocos nucifera) branches. An ant egg harvester will knock the nest off with a stick so that it falls into a bucket of water waiting below. [3] Reportedly, the best-tasting ant eggs are harvested from nests that are situated on mango trees. [3]
Formica pallidefulva (a field ant) is a species of ant found in North America. It is a red to dark brown ant with a shiny body, and varies in shade across its range. Colonies of this ant are found in a variety of habitats, where they excavate underground nests with galleries and chambers.
Get AOL Mail for FREE! Manage your email like never before with travel, photo & document views. Personalize your inbox with themes & tabs. You've Got Mail!
Blood-red ants, F. sanguinea, are facultative slave-makers, meaning colonies can live either alone or be parasitic. This allows them to be a good model organism to study the origins of brood stealing. [3] A fertilized F. sanguinea queen will enter the nest of the host ant species and kill their queen.