Carebara affinis

Supermajor and minor workers. Rossville, Queensland, Australia

Carebara affinis

Minor workers run in an underground foraging column. Mungkan Kandju National Park, Queensland, Australia

Carebara affinis

Carebara affinis marauder ants have one of the largest size disparities between the largest and smallest worker ants in a colony. Here a supermajor uses her massive jaws to cut through tree bark while minor workers stand by. The ants have discovered beetle larvae- a favored prey item- underneath the bark. Rossville, Queensland, Australia

Carebara affinis

Carebara affinis, supermajor and minor workers. Rossville, Queensland, Australia

Carebara affinis

Supermajor and minor workers. Rossville, Queensland, Australia

Carebara affinis

Worker polymorphism in the marauder ant Carebara affinis. Pictured here is a single supermajor worker, two major workers, and full complement of minor workers. These insects are all sisters and are essentially genetically identical, their different morphologies a result of developmental plasticity. Rossville, Queensland, Australia

Carebara affinis

Carebara affinis, supermajor and minor workers. Carebara has one of the most pronounced size differences among nestmate workers of any ant. Rossville, Queensland, Australia

Carebara affinis

Supermajor and minor workers attacking a beetle grub. Supermajors have powerful mandibles useful for cutting up and carrying large prey items. The supermajor pictured here was able to single-handedly drag this very large beetle larva across the substrate while I photographed them. Rossville, Queensland, Australia

Carebara brevipilosa

Carebara brevipilosa Unión Toachi, Pichincha, Ecuador

Carebara brevipilosa

Carebara brevipilosa Unión Toachi, Pichincha, Ecuador

Carebara longii

The only member of the circumtropical genus Carebara in the United States is Carebara longii, a subterranean ant recorded from several locations in Texas and one of the most rarely-encountered species on the continent. Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Austin, Texas, USA.

Carebara longii

The only member of the circumtropical genus Carebara found in the United States is Carebara longii, a subterranean ant known only from Texas and one of the most rarely-encountered species on the continent. Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Austin, Texas, USA.

Carebara longii

The only member of the circumtropical genus Carebara found in the United States is Carebara longii, a subterranean ant known only from Texas and one of the most rarely-encountered species on the continent. Brackenridge Field Laboratory, Austin, Texas, USA.