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Home » Guide » Arthropods (Arthropoda) » Hexapods (Hexapoda) » Insects (Insecta) » Ants, Bees, Wasps and Sawflies (Hymenoptera) » Aculeata - Ants, Bees and Stinging Wasps » Ants (Formicoidea) » Ants (Formicidae) » Myrmicinae » Solenopsidini » Pharaoh and Timid Ants (Monomorium)
Photo#204495
Tug-O-War - Monomorium
Copyright © 2008 Scott Justis

Tug-O-War - Monomorium
Norfolk, Virginia, USA
July 18, 2008
Size: ~4mm
These two ants were pulling on the presumably dead ant in a tug-o-war. I wonder if they were trying to dismember the ant in center which looks to be of the same species?

BTW - Neither one was winning :^)
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Contributed by Scott Justis on 21 July, 2008 - 7:14pm
Last updated 5 February, 2009 - 10:09pm

Moved
Moved from Ants.
… Scott Justis, 5 February, 2009 - 10:09pm login or register to post comments

Monomorium minimum - workers
The so-called "Little Black Ant", a widespread Eastern species.
The corpse is indeed one of the worker of the same species. Difficult to tell whether they actually killed her of whether they were simply discarding the body out their nest.
It is quite common for two workers of the same colony to pull on a same item in opposite directions, even though they would be supposed to cooperate. They are simply not - or at least not fully - aware of each other's presence. Much time is wasted likewise, but nature doesn't always work in a perfect way...
… Richard Vernier, 5 February, 2009 - 9:37pm login or register to post comments

 
Thanks Richard!
I remember they were still there tugging away after I moved on.
… Scott Justis, 5 February, 2009 - 10:12pm login or register to post comments

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