Cryptic Ants: Life in the Litter

Scarcely noticed by human observers, thousands of cryptic ant species live entirely underground in soil, rotting wood and leaf litter. These small, often blind insects are predators, scavengers, and farmers of root insects.

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Lasius umbratus cocoons in the brood nest.

Vermillion River Observatory, Illinois, USA

Lasius (Acanthomyops) californicus citronella ants with their underground "cattle": mealybugs that produce honeydew.

Mojave National Preserve, California, USA

Wasmannia auropunctata, the little fire ant, is one of the world's worst pest ants.

Gamboa, Panama

Myrmecina americana nest with brood in varying stages of development.

South Bristol, New York, USA

Linepithema micans running through tunnels in their underground nest.

Tafí del Valle, Tucumán, Argentina

Pheidole floridana

Brackenridge Field Lab, Austin, Texas

Solenopsis sp., thief ant nest.

Portal, Arizona, USA

Oxyepoecus reticulatus worker in a rotting log.

Monte Verde, Minas Gerais, Brazil

A Tetramorium (Triglyphothrix) worker forages across a rotting log in an African coastal forest.

St. Lucia, KZN, South Africa

Lasius umbratus cocoons in the brood nest.

Vermillion River Observatory, Illinois, USA

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Keywords: ants insect insects biology hymenoptera brood formicidae ant nest formicinae ant eggs worker ant lasius social insects ant development cthonolasius lasius umbratus brood nest ant pupae ant pupa

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Cryptic Ants: Life in the Litter

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