Monomorium floricola ranks among the most traveled of all ants. This diminutive species has spread with human commerce to nearly every lowland tropical region. Here, a worker tends to a mealybug in Panama. Isla Contadora, Panama
Formicine ants are often dependent on honeydew-producing insects. Here, Lepisiota sp. workers tend to scale insects in a South African forest. St. Lucia, KZN, South Africa
On the underside of a sun-soaked leaf, Aphaenogaster tennesseensis tending to Entylia sp. treehoppers. The treehoppers secrete sweet honeydew for the ants in exchange for protections from parasites and predators. Lake Glendale, Illinois, USA