A Coconut Ant at Red Hill, ACT
Identification history
| Papyrius sp. (genus) | 21 Jan 2024 | JonLewis | ||
| Papyrius sp. (genus) | 21 Jan 2024 | LisaH |
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User's notes
Some were carrying the white whatever-it-is down the trunk and through the casing, while one ant carried the . . . (are they larvae?) up the trunk. Unfortunately, I also saw a small black wasp enter the cavity near the ground/base of the tree. I am unsure whether the fifth photo is an unrelated moth/butterfly cocoon? It was situated in an alcove at the base of the tree where the ants were busy entering and leaving
2 comments
JonLewis
wrote:
21 Jan 2024
Thanks for the pics Lisa. The things going down look to be worker larvae and the ones going up look like very advanced queen larvae, nearly pupae (they don’t have pupal cases, unlike a lot of other ants). They move brood around a lot, giving them more or less warmth or space depending on how quickly they want the brood to mature. The wasp could certainly be parasitic but not sure about the cocoon. Cheers, Jon
LisaH
wrote:
22 Jan 2024
Thank you so much for interpreting the photos, and sharing your knowledge - fascinating! The things you learn when you stop and look for a little while . . .
Location information
- Places Red Hill, ACT
Sighting information
- 101 - 1,000 Abundance
- 21 Jan 2024 10:39 AM Recorded on
- LisaH Recorded by
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Collections
Insects Ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae)
Additional information
- 5mm to 12mm Animal size
- Alive / healthy Animal health
Species information
- Papyrius sp. (genus) Scientific name
- A Coconut Ant Common name
- Sensitive
- Local native
- Non-invasive or negligible
- 349 images trained Machine learning
- External link More information
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Synonyms
Papyrius sp.
Record quality
- Images or audio
- More than one media file
- Verified by an expert moderator
- Nearby sighting(s) of same species
- GPS evidence of location
- Description
- Additional attributes
