Papyrius nitidus

Shining Coconut Ant at Latham, ACT

Papyrius nitidus at Latham, ACT - 14 Nov 2019
Papyrius nitidus at Latham, ACT - 14 Nov 2019
Papyrius nitidus at Latham, ACT - 14 Nov 2019
Papyrius nitidus at Latham, ACT - 14 Nov 2019
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Identification history

Papyrius nitidus 14 Nov 2019 JonLewis
Papyrius nitidus 14 Nov 2019 MattM

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Significant sighting

MichaelMulvaney noted:

15 Nov 2019

New "heart of Belconnen" location for this ant

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

JonLewis wrote:
   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
MattM wrote:
   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.

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