Pheidole sp. (genus)
Seed-harvesting ant at Lyneham, ACT
Identify this sighting
| Pheidole sp. (genus) | JonLewis | 12 Oct 2018 | |
| Pheidole sp. (genus) | KimPullen | 12 Oct 2018 | |
| Unverified | MichaelMulvaney | 12 Oct 2018 |
Please Login or Register to identify this sighting.
User's notes
A very large colony of very tiny ants was discovered inside a tree (at head height) cut down yesterday in my backyard. The hollow where they were living was inside of the trunk and goes all the way to root level. The ants are very tiny but the colony had huge numbers. I've checked with a termite control firm and they advise that they are in fact ants but could not tell me the species. They are pale coloured and hard to spot on the ground due to tiny size and colour. I'm curious if anyone can identify them.
Veronika
10 comments
12 Oct 2018
Hard to say because it depends on what is 'very tiny' and 'pale' but I would suggest Argentine ants. Catch some with a strip of sticky tape so they can be examined by an expert.
12 Oct 2018
No photo. I assumed you were posting a report from Veronika so it could be followed up.
12 Oct 2018
Pics added from MM's email.
The files had the suffix ".jpeg" ---- I converted them to ".jpg" files and they loaded successfully.
The files had the suffix ".jpeg" ---- I converted them to ".jpg" files and they loaded successfully.
12 Oct 2018
I have only seen worker ants in trails across the floor and up the walls but these could be Argentine ants Linepithema humile. I always expect the worst in house and garden sightings.
12 Oct 2018
One of the ants (top of the image) has a very large head and mandibles, characteristic of a Pheidole major worker. And the minor workers of Pheidole are certainly small.
13 Oct 2018
Cropped image added for use on the "Species" page.
https://canberra.naturemapr.org/Community/Species/23172
https://canberra.naturemapr.org/Community/Species/23172
Location information
- Coordinates 149.118670-35.245193
- Places Lyneham, ACT
Sighting information
- 101 - 1,000 Abundance
- 10 Oct 2018 08:12 PM Recorded on
- MichaelMulvaney Recorded by
- Less than 5mm Animal size
Collections
- MichaelMulvaney Canberra & Southern Tablelands NatureMapr Pheidole sp. (genus) Ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) Insects
Species information
- Pheidole sp. (genus) Scientific name
- Seed-harvesting ant Common name
- Not Sensitive
- Local native
- Non-invasive or negligible
- Up to 1141.89m Recorded at altitude
- External link More information
Record quality
Quality score
5 / 7
- Images or audio
- More than one media file
- Verified by an expert moderator
- Description
- Additional attributes
- Nearby sighting(s) of same species
- GPS evidence of location