Pavement ant
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Pavement ant | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 A small pavement ant, magnified 60×. The spine on the back and the two nodes on the petiole are visible in the bottom-right corner.
|
||||||||||||||||
| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||
| Binomial name | ||||||||||||||||
| Tetramorium caespitum (Linnaeus, 1758) |
The pavement ant, Tetramorium caespitum, is a common household pest. Their name comes from the fact that they usually make their homes in pavement. They are distinguished by two spines on the back, two nodes on the petiole, and grooves on the head and thorax [1].
During early spring, colonies attempt to conquer new areas and often attack nearby enemy colonies. These result in huge sidewalk battles, sometimes leaving thousands of ants dead. Because of their aggressive nature, they often invade and colonize seemingly impenetrable areas. In summer time the ants dig out the sand in between the pavements to vent the nests.
[edit] Description
The pavement ant is dark brown to blackish, and ⅛ in long. It will eat almost anything, including insects, seeds, honeydew, honey, bread, meats, nuts and cheese. The species does not pose a public health risk, but can contaminate food and should be avoided [2].
[edit] References
 |
This ant–related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
