Lasius niger

More Ant Antics

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Small Black Ant Lasius niger & Brown Soft Scale Coccus hesperidum

Here we have the Small Black Ant (Lasius niger) again. But what is he up to this time, you may wonder?

I found him on my Fatsia Japonica with these strange yellow ‘bumps’ which are in fact another species of scale insect called Viburnum Cushion Scale (Lichtensia viburni). And you guessed it, he is eating sweet sugary poop again.

The scale insect has piercing and sucking mouthparts which it uses to feed on sap obtained from the host plant (in this case Fatsia Japonica) which it secretes as waste called honeydew. Ants are attracted to the honeydew and feed on it. Ants will even act as body guards, protecting the scale insects from predatory attacks. This ant spent quite sometime with the scale insect, touching it with its antennae.

06/2107/21 by Peter Hillman Categories: Ants, InsectsTags: Lasius niger, Lichtensia viburni 13 Comments

Kingdom of The Ants

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Ths is the Small Black Ant Lasius niger milking the Small Willow Aphid (Aphis farinosa) for its poop, which is pure honey to them – honeydew. Even waste doesn’t go to waste.

06/21 by Peter Hillman Categories: Ants, InsectsTags: Lasius niger 37 Comments

Hey You! Slow Down Will You?

Hello all! Sorry I have been away for so long, and thank you to those who have been enquiring after me! 🙂 A message popped up today that it was my WordPress.com Birthday – 5 years! Where have all those years gone!

I thought I would return with a bit of humour. This Small Black Ant Lasius niger had a keen interest in this Garden Snail Cornu aspersum, to such a degree it managed to get stuck inside its shell!

‘Flaming June’ is living up to its name here, and wherever you are in the world I hope you are all safe and well and enjoying your season! I am very much looking forward to catching up on your posts!

All the best and take care … Pete

06/2106/21 by Peter Hillman Categories: PhotographyTags: Ant and snail racing, Cornu aspersum, Humour, Lasius niger 42 Comments

The Clean Queen

The new queen ant which has fled the nest on its nuptial flight seems to be more interested in the ornate ball set atop the post of my decking. She seemed to be eating the decking oil (see image directly below) I had treated it with, which I have seen other ants do in the past. She was also a very clean queen, for she was always grooming herself. She must have been up there for at least 2 hours, and seemed very reluctant to leave.

Rear garden, Staffordshire, England. July 2017.

07/17 by Peter Hillman Categories: Animals, Animals (Invertebrates), Ants, Insect Macro, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature Photography, Photography, Wildlife PhotographyTags: Ants, Black Garden Ant, Black Garden Ant Lasius niger queen, Hymenoptera, Insect Macro, Insects, Lasius niger, Macro, Macro Photography, Nature, Nature Photography, Photography, Wildlife, Wildlife Photography 14 Comments

Black Garden Ant

A uniformly dark brown ant which has a single, scale-like waist segment. Length worker 3 to 5mm, queen 7 to 9mm.

The Black Garden Ant goes through four stages of development, from egg to larva, cocoon, and finally adult. They have a complex social order, with a worker caste and a queen. A mature ant colony may contain the queen and between 4,000 to 7,000 female workers. Black Garden Ants do not sting or spray formic acid like some other species of ant do.

Mating swarms occur in August during hot, humid weather. The winged females and males maybe seen in large numbers. Soon after mating the males die, where the females shed their wings and establish new colonies.

They harvest aphids for their sweet honeydew by stroking them with their antennae. They also protect aphids from predation, which does not go down well with gardeners in general. They will also feed on ripe fruits such a strawberries and raspberries, and will eat other invertebrates.

Almost anywhere, in tree stumps and under logs, and found under stones and paving in gardens where they build their nests in the soil. They also make their way into houses on food raiding expeditions where they may become a pest. Abundant and widespread throughout, and is the most seen ant in the UK.

Photograph taken July 2016, rear garden, Staffordshire.