Recently in Large ants Category

Hi,

I was wondering if you could help in identifying the attached ant image.

The ant was pictured in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania at about 15-20mm of length.

Thanks
Muhammad

Dear Muhammad,

Thank you for your question! The picture you provided is great, which helps for identification! Since you are in Tanzania, we have contacted an expert on insects in the area, Peter Hawkes, for help. Here is what he said:

"The photo is of a major worker of a Camponotus species, in the subgenus Tanaemyrmex . The taxonomy of the genus Camponotus in Africa is simply not well enough resolved for me to attempt a more definite identification than this."

The genus Camponotus is very large with about 1,058 extant species (www.antweb.org) and the identification to the species level is often challenging. Click here to see all Camponotus on antweb.

All the best,
Peter Hawkes (guest expert), Steffi Kautz & the AntAsk Team

Hi there,

Writing from Caracas Venezuela to ask what huge ant this one might be. I'm guessing it was between 2.5 - 3 cm long (an inch long or slightly larger), but it's hard to say. I will go back and take more pictures of that hydrant's top nut again, with a ruler next to it, to be able to better estimate how long the ant might have been. Will post that pic also in this album on Picasa no later than this weekend:

https://picasaweb.google.com/105698362244197634202/HormigaGigante?authuser=0&feat=directlink

It is easily the largest ant I've ever seen in my life. Friends on Facebook are saying it looks more like a wingless wasp than an ant, and I sort of agree. In any case, it was the size of a wasp, and looked really mean, even though it was moving pretty slowly.

Searched for "Largest ants" on Google and came across "Bullet ants," which made me worry whether those can be found in the Jardín Botanic of Caracas, and whether I had placed my hands so near such a dangerous little creature. But the photos I saw didn't look that much like a match, specially the jaws. Then found the "trap jaw ants", and those look much more similar, but apparently those are much smaller, not this big. So not sure at all what I came across.

Your help is appreciated. Great website by the way!

All the best,
Raúl

Dear Raúl,

What great pictures! You're absolutely right: this is a "trap jaw ant," which in this case belongs to the genus Odontomachus. The one you saw is a little bigger than average because she is a newly mated queen who has just lost her wings (you can tell by the enlarged thoracic segments where her wings would have attached). She is looking for a place to start a new colony.

As you probably noticed, Paraponera clavata, the "bullet ant" has much differently shaped jaws (or mandibles). Believe it or not, they are also bigger than the ant you saw. They tend to prefer more densely-canopied forests. I would be surprised to see one on a fire hydrant, but you definitely have them in Venezuela, so it's good to stay on the lookout.

Even thought it isn't a real "bullet ant," you should still watch out: all Odontomachus have painful stings.

I can't tell what species of Odontomachus yours is, but the most common one in your area is Odontomachus bauri. Odontomachus chelifer is larger, but less common. There are many other species of Odontomachus in your region, though, and without looking at it under the microscope, though, I can't be sure.

I hope this helps!
Best,
Jesse Czekanski-Moir & the AntAsk Team

Hello,
I have a question about a type of ant we have here in south Texas. Here in Hebbronville we have an ant that sound very much like the Paraponera ant. The ant has a VERY painful sting and it is large and black. The sting is much more painful than that of our native gold scorpions. just wondering what type of ant this may be. They live at the base of older Mesquite trees and my grandparents use to call them "palmoranas" thats a Spanish word for these ants.

Thank you,
Daniel

Dear Daniel,

There are over 140 species of ants known from Texas. You can see a list of the species and images of most of them here.

Without seeing the ant it is hard to be sure what species you are encountering, but I can tell you it is not Paraponera clavata since this ant is not found that far north. You can see a map of the known distribution here.

The ant with the painful sting is likely a species of Pachycondyla if they mostly forage on the ground. These ants are know to be aggressive and have painful stings when disturbed. On the other hand if the ants run up and down the mesquite tree then they could be a species of Pseudomyrmex, which can also have painful stings.

I hope you continue to observe all the diverse and beautiful ants around you!

Corrie Moreau & the AntAsk Team

The ants we want to Identify are about 1/2" in length. We are in central Illinois.  They are living in an old pile of wood planks.  They are black, red, gray  (head, thorax, abdomen). Any help would be great. 
Ed
Jacksonville, Illinois

Ed,

Thanks for your question! Although a picture would help to give you a positive identification, it is likely that you are looking at a member of the genus Camponotus. Members of this genus will typically be among the largest ants encountered in North America and Europe (and many other places; in Southeast Asia they have a truly giant species, see a previous post on giant ants ). These ants often live in rotting wood, including wood that has fallen, and rotten sections in living trees. Some species even live in rotting sections of people's houses! The ants commonly called "Carpenter Ants" belong to this genus, but the species in your area that lives up to this name, Camponotus pennsylvanicus is all black, so it's likely you're looking at a species that prefers the habitat in which you found it.

Based on your location and the description you gave, a likely candidate is Camponotus chromaiodes . But we encourage you to brows the Ants of Illinois page and the Ants of Missouri page to see if you can find a better match!

Hope this helps! You're welcome to send us pictures if you want a more positive identification, or if you have any further questions.

Best,
Jesse Czekanski-Moir & the AntAsk Team

Dear ant experts,
I found these large ants yesterday in my backyard. I have never seen them before.

No one I know has been able to identify them.
I was hoping you could identify them and tell me a little about them.
Through observation these are some details I can tell you about them.

Their color appeared to be a pearlescent orange red color in sunlight.
They were about an inch in length.
The appeared to be rather thick for an ant.
Some were winged and others not winged.
I tried to capture one and they were quick and evasive.
I live in Palmdale, California which is located in Mojave desert, high desert area.

I have uploaded the pictures on photobucket. Here are the links:

http://i807.photobucket.com/albums/yy357/noinfoneeded/DSCF0308.jpg?t=1279386160
http://i807.photobucket.com/albums/yy357/noinfoneeded/DSCF0299.jpg?t=1279386160
http://i807.photobucket.com/albums/yy357/noinfoneeded/DSCF0304.jpg?t=1279386238
http://i807.photobucket.com/albums/yy357/noinfoneeded/DSCF0307.jpg?t=1279386273

Thank you in advance,
Efren
Palmdale, California

Dear Efren,

Thank you for contacting AntAsk and including photos of your mystery ants! Not only do the photos really help us with identifications, but also knowing where you live really helps us narrow the list of possible ant species.

From the photos and description you sent of the ants you are finding in your backyard, it looks to me like you are seeing species of harvester ants from the genus Pogonomyrmex. Although it is difficult to tell exactly which species you are observing, it seems you are likely finding either P. californicus or P. rugosus, but you can see a list of all the species of Pogonomyrmex found in California on AntWeb here.

You can also see additional photos of each Pogonomyrmex species and distribution maps here.

Pogonomyrmex ants are called "harvester" ants because they collect seeds to feed on (called granivory). You can often find them carrying seeds back to their nests and ant photographer, Alex Wild, has some great photos of this behavior on his website here.

You mentioned that you saw both winged and non-winged individuals. The winged ants are the female and male sexuals getting ready to go on their nuptial mating flight. You can read more about this on a previous AntBlog post here.

On a last note, I should mention that harvester ants are often known for their painful stings, so be careful when trying to collect them. Remember that ants, like most animals, usually only hurt humans when they feel threatened. So as long as you are not trying to pick them up or dig into their nest, you are not likely to be stung. Enjoy their beauty and remember that they are part of the native habitat and serve many useful services in the ecosystem (including dispersing seeds).

Thanks for sharing your ant photos!
Corrie Moreau & the AntAsk Team

This is a great question and fits well with our post below on "What is the largest ant in the world?"

Leaf-cutter ants of the genus Atta are well known for cutting and carrying bits of leaf material back to their nest. They then chew this leaf material up into a fine paste to use as the substrate to grow their food - fungus! This is where they get their other common name, fungus-growing ants. Since fungus growing ants have been cultivating fungus for ~50 millions of years, this makes them the worlds first farmers.

In a leaf-cutter ant colony there are many sizes of individuals from minute workers to large soldiers to the giant queen herself. The queen of leaf-cutter colonies such as Atta cephalotes can be 22 mm in length. Not quite as long as the the African driver ants mentioned in the post below, but still very large.

- Corrie Moreau & the AntAsk Team

Well, Luke, there are many ways to answer that question. In virtually all ant colonies the queen is the largest member, and none are larger than those of the African driver ants in the genus Dorylus, measuring more than 4 cm long. Colonies of this species may include many millions of individuals, all of which are laid by one massive queen. Males of this genus are almost as long (~3 cm) and more robust than queens. Commonly known as "sausage flies" for their characteristically long and bloated abdomen, males disperse from their natal nest in search of other colonies, which drag the male into the nest to mate with virgin queens.

Several species may claim to have the largest workers, including the "dinosaur ants" in the genus Dinoponera from South America and Camponotus gigas of Southeast Asia, each measuring about 3 cm. Just slightly smaller than these two giants is the notorious bullet ant (Paraponera clavata) of Central and South America, so-called for its excruciating sting.

Perhaps the largest ant ever is the extinct Formicium giganteum from the Eocene (about 46 million years ago), whose queen measured 5.5 cm long with a 13 cm wingspan - larger than a ruby-throated hummingbird. By comparison, the smallest workers in the ant genus Carebara can be smaller than a pinhead (< 1 mm)!

- Tim O'Connor & the AntAsk team

Velvet ants are wasps that sometimes look like ants.  Velvet ants are often covered with hairs giving them a velvet-like appearance. They are usually black or brown, but sometimes they can have eye-catching coloration such as red, yellow or orange. Sizes can can range from 6-30 mm (0.25-1.5 in.). Both velvet ants and true ants are in the order Hymenoptera, (which also includes bees and other wasps), but velvet ants are in their own family, the Mutillidae, whereas all true ants belong to the family Formicidae. 

In temperate regions, velvet ants (hereafter, mutillids) are usually easy to tell apart from true ants because they are so hairy.  Although some tropical ants can be quite hairy, like this Echinopla from Borneo, this Calomyrmex and this Polyrhachis, both from Australia, very few ants are as large and hairy as mutillids.  Another important difference between ants and mutillids is that ants usually have a very long first antennal segment, followed by 3-12 very short segments (picture).  This antennal morphology is called "elbowed," or "geniculate." Mutillids do have a slightly elongate first antennal segment, but it never extends much beyond their face. 

There are approximately 6000 species in the Mutillidae. Female mutillids are wingless and have an ant-like appearance, whereas males have wings. They often produce sound by rubbing body parts together, or stridulation. They have a very painful sting, which is why they are sometimes referred to as "cow-killers". The sting is usually more painful than a bee sting. However, as velvet ants are solitary insects, the attack of multiple individuals is rare.  

Mutillid ecology

Little is known about mutillid ecology. From the species that have been studied, we know that they are often parasites of ground-nesting bees and wasps, like bumble bees. Mutillid larvae are usually external parasitoids of their host species. This means that the female mutillid wasp lays an egg close to a pupa and does not place it inside the pupa. A review on mutillids as parasites of social insects is given by Brothers et al. (2000). According to "Brothers' rule" (Brothers 2000), "larvae of the mutillid wasps are always ectoparasites of host stages which are enclosed in some sort of package (cell, cocoon, puparium, ootheca) and which are not actively feeding". Most commonly, host species are from the groups of wasps, bees (Hymenoptera), flies (Diptera), beetles (Coleoptera) (Brothers et al. 2000 and references therein).

Some mutillid wasps mimic ants. One species, Pappognatha myrmiciformis, mimics the ant Camponotus sericeiventris as described by Wheeler (1983). The purpose of this mimicry is not clear. As mutillids possess a very painful sting and have a very hard exoskeleton, this mimicry probably does not serve a protective function. Wheeler (1983) hypothesizes that the resemblance might enable females to enter the nest of C. sericeiventris and parasitize the brood. However, Brothers et al. (2000) find it more likely that the larvae of the parasitoid feed on myrmecophilic (ant loving) beetles that live within the ant colonies.

Brothers DJ, Tschuch G, and Burger F  (2000)  Associations of mutillid wasps (Hymenoptera, Mutillidae) with eusocial insects. Insect. Soc. 47: 201-211.

Wheeler GC (1983)  A mutillid mimic of an ant (Hymenoptera: Mitillidae and Formicidae).  Entomol. News 94: 143-144.

Dasymutilla gloriosa - Thistledown Velvet Ant. California, USA. Photo by Alex Wild (www.alexanderwild.com)