msquebanh ,
@msquebanh@mastodon.sdf.org avatar

Observed some herding on morning walk. These farmer have a special relationship with aphids.

more:
https://www.mcgill.ca/oss/article/did-you-know/farmer-ants-and-their-aphid-herds

My video of the farmer ants, hard at work:
https://youtube.com/shorts/NqI6hVYnoPQ?si=96nXBtYyO4LjeYVc

Hundreds of aphids on maple leaves.

msquebanh OP ,
@msquebanh@mastodon.sdf.org avatar

@futurebird Do you know what species of ant these are? I don't know ant species. These were at a park on Southern Vancouver Island, BC

futurebird ,
@futurebird@sauropods.win avatar

@msquebanh Camponotus pennsylvanicus with 90% certainty— small chance it could be Camponotus chromaides— a very similar but more rare sp.

msquebanh OP ,
@msquebanh@mastodon.sdf.org avatar

@futurebird Thank you, very much. I'm going to look them up. I'm fascinated by the behaviours of ants.

I'm heading back to one of my fave regional parks soon - for nature hiking & to check up on a few thatching ant colonies. I love those ants & have spent hours just watching them work. They're amazing! I'll update with photos & videos, after.

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