Tag Archives: ants

Peony Buds

Posted on April 17, 2012 by

Our peonies are getting close to blooming.  Peonies at this stage secrete some kind of nectar or sap that is very attractive to insects.  Often you will see the buds covered with ants. They are also quite attractive to flies.  … Continue reading →

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Firewood Critters

Posted on September 15, 2011 by

I’ve put off cutting firewood for most of the summer.  Now it is getting cold, and summer will soon be gone.  So I have started cutting some. I easily get off task, however.  Here are some critters I found under … Continue reading →

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Peony Ants

Posted on May 20, 2011 by

Peony buds always seem to attract a number of ants. I think this is Formica subsericea Either there are numbers of ants or there are numbers of other insects–often flies. These peonies had a number of very colorful bluebottle flies, … Continue reading →

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The Evil Springtail

Posted on December 11, 2010 by

During the spring and summer of 2010 I spent several days watching and photographing ants and visitors on a nest of the Allegheny mound-building ant.  On June second I saw what I thought was the most remarkable event I have witnessed on … Continue reading →

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A Pretty Good Ant Mimic

Posted on December 7, 2010 by

While photographing the mound of the Allegheny mound ant I noticed what I thought was a black ant crawling on the grass that grows on the mound.  It was moving fairly rapidly, but I was able to get a few … Continue reading →

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Debris

Posted on December 6, 2010 by

In April a cluster of debris could be seen on the outside of the mound, presumably brought up from inside.

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An Ant Mound Through the Year

Posted on December 4, 2010 by

This summer I spent a lot of time photographing some ants and their visitors around the nest of Allgeheny mound building ants, Formica exsectoides.  A lot about the ant is still a mystery to me, but I did learn a few … Continue reading →

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Ants and snails

Posted on October 4, 2010 by

While splitting logs the other day I happened to split one that had a branch and a hollow part in it.  It broke up an ant’s nest and the ants started scurrying around carrying their eggs and larva. There were … Continue reading →

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Aphids and Ants

Posted on September 14, 2010 by

I saw a common milkweed with a number of aphids.  The aphids had ants tending them.    The aphids are oleander aphids, Aphis nerii.  To properly identify the ants they would need to be keyed out.   Maybe I will if I get … Continue reading →

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Other Ant Species on the Nest of Formica exsectoides

Posted on September 4, 2010 by

 In the previous post I mentioned that the beetle Thecesternus affinis was not noticed by Formica exsectoides.  It was noticed by another species of ant that was on the mound, however. This is an odorous house ant, Tapinoma sessile.  I have seen this species … Continue reading →

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