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| Carpenter ant | |
|---|---|
| |
| Camponotus herculeanus (Worker) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hymenoptera |
| Family: | Formicidae |
| Subfamily: | Formicinae |
| Tribe: | Camponotini |
| Genus: | Camponotus |
| Type species | |
| Formica ligniperda Latreille, 1802 | |
| Species | |
|
See text. | |
| Diversity | |
| > 1,000 species | |
Carpenter ants are large ants (¼ in–1 in) indigenous to many parts of the world. They prefer dead, damp wood in which to build nests. Sometimes carpenter ants will hollow out sections of trees. The most likely species to be infesting a house is the Black carpenter ant, Camponotus pennsylvanicus. However, there are over a thousand other species in the genus Camponotus.
Symbionts
All ants in this genus, and also some related genera, possess an obligate bacterial endosymbiont called Blochmannia. This bacterium has a small genome, and retains genes to biosynthesize essential amino acids and other nutrients. This suggests the bacterium plays a role in ant nutrition. Many Camponotus species are also infected with Wolbachia, another endosymbiont that is widespread across insect groups.
Exploding ants
In at least nine Southeast Asian species of the Cylindricus complex, such as Camponotus saundersi, workers feature greatly enlarged mandibular glands. They can release their contents suicidally by rupturing the intersegmental membrane of the gaster, resulting in a spray of toxic substance from the head, which gave these species the common name "exploding ants". The ant juice is very potent to small animals and may cause discomfort in larger animals such as humans.
Selected Species
See List of Camponotus species for a complete listing of species and subspecies.
- Camponotus atriceps — Florida carpenter ant; one of the many kinds of carpenter ants that can bite and release a painful acid.
- Camponotus chromaiodes — red carpenter ant
- Camponotus consobrinus — sugar ant
- Camponotus crassus Mayr, 1862
- Camponotus ferrugineus (Fab.) — red carpenter ant
- Camponotus gigas — Giant forest ant
- Camponotus herculeanus
- Camponotus kaura
- Camponotus ligniperda — an important species in Europe
- Camponotus nearcticus (Emery) — smaller carpenter ant
- Camponotus pennsylvanicus (DeGeer) — black carpenter ant
- Camponotus punctulatus (Mayr) — Tacuru ant
- Camponotus saundersi — Malaysia
- Camponotus sericeus
- Camponotus taino
- Camponotus variegatus — Hawai'ian carpenter ant
Footnotes
- Jones et al. 2004
References
- Jones, T.H.; Clark, D.A.; Edwards, A.A.; Davidson, D.W.; Spande, T.F. & Snelling, Roy R. (2004): The Chemistry of Exploding Ants, Camponotus spp. (Cylindricus complex). Journal of Chemical Ecology 30(8): 1479-1492. doi:10.1023/B:JOEC.0000042063.01424.28
Further reading
- Mayr, Gustav (1861): Die europäischen Formiciden. Vienna. PDF — original description of p.35
- McArthur, Archie J (2007): A Key to Camponotus Mayr of Australia. In: Snelling, R.R., B.L. Fisher & P.S. Ward (eds). Advances in ant systematics (Hymenoptera: Formicidae): homage to E.O. Wilson - 50 years of contributions. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute 80. PDF — 91 species, 10 subspecies
External links
- University of Kentucky Extension Fact Sheet
- Ohio State University Extension Fact Sheet
- Black Carpenter Ants Diagnostic large format photographs, information
- Harvard University Fact Sheet on Carpenter Ants
- Information On Carpenter Ant Treatment
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