A busy trail of Monomorium pharaonis pharaoh ants. This species is now among the most pesty house-inhabitating ants worldwide.

Icononzo, Tolima, Colombia
A busy trail of Monomorium pharaonis pharaoh ants. This species is now among the most pesty house-inhabitating ants worldwide.

Icononzo, Tolima, Colombia
A tight column of Cerapachys ruficornis departs on an afternoon raid.

Diamond Creek, Victoria, Australia
A column of sleek Cerapachys ruficornis.  Notice that most of these ants carry small red mites on their bodies.

Diamond Creek, Victoria, Australia
Linepithema micans running through tunnels in their underground nest.

Tafí del Valle, Tucumán, Argentina
Simopelta sp. nr. pergandei, nest emigration across leaf litter.

Parque Nacional Henri Pittier, Venezuela
Simopelta sp. nr. pergandei, nest emigration across leaf litter.

Parque Nacional Henri Pittier, Venezuela
Simopelta sp. nr. pergandei. One of the most remarkable examples of evolutionary convergence in ants involves the ponerine genus Simopelta and the true army ants (subfamilies Ecitoninae, Aenictinae, and Dorylinae).  Both groups are specialized predators of other ants, and their queens have a similar morphology.  

Parque Nacional Henri Pittier, Venezuela
Nomamyrmex esenbeckii

Gamboa, Panama
Simopelta sp. nr. pergandei, nest emigration across leaf litter.

Parque Nacional Henri Pittier, Venezuela
Simopelta sp. nr. pergandei, nest emigration across leaf litter.

Parque Nacional Henri Pittier, Venezuela
Simopelta sp. nr. pergandei, nest emigration across leaf litter.

Parque Nacional Henri Pittier, Venezuela
See photo in original gallery.
all images and text © Alex Wild 2001-2013