Papyrius nitidus
Shining Coconut Ant at Latham, ACT
Identify this sighting
| Papyrius nitidus | JonLewis | 14 Nov 2019 | |
| Papyrius nitidus | MattM | 14 Nov 2019 |
Please Login or Register to identify this sighting.
Significant sighting
User's notes
Again they smell like coconut, but not quite. A slightly unpleasant coconut smell. Are there similar species or is the scent variable?
2 comments
15 Nov 2019
Hi Matt, yes, there are two species of Papyrius around Canberra, both of which smell like coconut. Based on the look of the nest and area around the nest these are very likely P. nitidus. It's possible the other species (which is unnamed) does smell slightly different but I haven't smelled enough of them to be sure! Cheers, Jon
15 Nov 2019
Oh yes. I remember Michael telling me about a second species. I was a bit surprised by the trees they were living in. Two of the colonies were in a Eucalypt that I don't recognise, while the third colony was in a blue gum. I thought they had a preference for stringy bark, but there weren't any stringy barks nearby.
Location information
- Maps Umbagong District Park
- Places Latham, ACT
Sighting information
- At least 1 Abundance
- MattM Recorded by
Collections
- Significant MattM Canberra & Southern Tablelands NatureMapr Papyrius nitidus Ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) Insects
Species information
- Papyrius nitidus Scientific name
- Shining Coconut Ant Common name
- Sensitive
- Local native
- Non-invasive or negligible
- Up to 860.96m Recorded at altitude
- External link More information
Record quality
Quality score
6 / 7
- Images or audio
- More than one media file
- Verified by an expert moderator
- Nearby sighting(s) of same species
- GPS evidence of location
- Description
- Additional attributes