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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) » Formicinae » Formicini » Wood ants, mound ants, & field ants (Formica) » rufa group (Formica rufa group) » Thatching ant (Formica obscuripes)
Photo#482238
Ant - Formica obscuripes
Copyright © 2010 Kevin Hall

Ant - Formica obscuripes
Lacey (near Olympia), Thurston County, Washington, USA
August 27, 2007


This picture, and the 5 others shown in the thumbnails, were all taken within a few minutes of each other. They show different individuals (of the same colony) and some different behaviors and probably castes. These may be Western Thatching Ants. We have a lot in my area, and they do look like this, but I didn't know thatching ants "milked" aphids.

This particular picture is just to show a nice closeup image of one of the ants, front/head view.
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Contributed by Kevin Hall on 30 December, 2010 - 11:27am
Last updated 31 December, 2010 - 9:07am

Moved
Moved from Ants.
… Kevin Hall, 31 December, 2010 - 9:07am login or register to post comments

Thatch mound ants
Hi Kevin, these are indeed thatch mound ants, Formica obscuripes. I would move them to that species if I had the capability. These ants do not have differentiated worker castes; rather, the worker sizes grade into each other with concomittant color change. Glad that your shots include the aphids.
… Brendon E. Boudinot, 31 December, 2010 - 3:34am login or register to post comments

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