The banded sugar ant (''Camponotus consobrinus''), also known as the sugar ant, is a species of ant native to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. A member of the genus ''

Camponotus Carpenter ants (''Camponotus'' spp.) are a genus of large ants (workers ) indigenous to many parts of the world. True carpenter ants build nests inside wood, consisting of galleries chewed out with their mandibles or jaws, preferably in dead, ...

'' in the subfamily

Formicinae The Formicinae are a subfamily within the Formicidae containing ants of moderate evolutionary development. Formicines retain some primitive features, such as the presence of cocoons around pupae, the presence of ocelli in workers, and littl ...

, it was described by German entomologist

Wilhelm Ferdinand Erichson Wilhelm Ferdinand Erichson (26 November 1809 – 18 December 1848) was a German entomologist and doctor. He was the author of many articles about insects mainly in ''Archiv für Naturgeschichte''. When writing in Latin, he latinised ''Wilhelm'' ...

in 1842. Its common name refers to the ant's liking for

sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecul ...

and sweet food, as well as the distinctive orange-brown band that wraps around its gaster. The ant is polymorphic and relatively large, with two different castes of workers: major workers (also known as soldiers), and minor workers. These two group of workers measure around in length, while the queen ants are even larger. Mainly nocturnal, banded sugar ants prefer a

mesic habitat In ecology, a mesic habitat is a type of habitat with a well-balanced or moderate supply of moisture throughout the growing season (e.g., a mesic forest, temperate hardwood forest, or dry-mesic prairie). The term derives from the Greek ''mesos'' ...

, and are commonly found in forests and woodlands. They also occur in urban areas, where they are considered a household pest. The ant's diet includes sweet secretions that are retrieved from

aphid Aphids are small sap-sucking insects in the Taxonomic rank, family Aphididae. Common names include greenfly and blackfly, although individuals within a species can vary widely in color. The group includes the fluffy white Eriosomatinae, woolly ...

s and other insects that it tends. This species is a competitor of the

meat ant The meat ant (''Iridomyrmex purpureus''), also known as the gravel ant or southern meat ant, is a species of ant Endemism, endemic to Australia (island), Australia. A member of the genus ''Iridomyrmex'' in the subfamily Dolichoderinae, it was ...

(''Iridomyrmex purpureus''); food robbery and nest-plugging are known to occur between these two ants. Workers prey on insects, killing them with a spray of

formic acid Formic acid (), systematically named methanoic acid, is the simplest carboxylic acid. It has the chemical formula HCOOH and structure . This acid is an important intermediate in chemical synthesis and occurs naturally, most notably in some an ...

. Banded sugar ants are preyed upon by other ants,

echidna Echidnas (), sometimes known as spiny anteaters, are quill-covered monotremes (egg-laying mammals) belonging to the Family (biology), family Tachyglossidae , living in Australia and New Guinea. The four Extant taxon, extant species of echidnas ...

s, and birds. The eggs of this species were consumed by

Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...

Taxonomy

The banded sugar ant was first described by German entomologist

, who named it ''Formica consobrina'' in 1842. The

holotype A holotype (Latin: ''holotypus'') is a single physical example (or illustration) of an organism used when the species (or lower-ranked taxon) was formally described. It is either the single such physical example (or illustration) or one of s ...

specimen is a queen collected from

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

, which is now housed in the

Museum für Naturkunde The Natural History Museum () is a natural history museum located in Berlin, Germany. It exhibits a vast range of specimens from various segments of natural history and in such domain it is one of three major museums in Germany alongside Naturm ...

in Berlin. ''Formica consobrina'' was later moved to the genus ''Camponotus'' as ''Camponotus consobrinus'', by entomologist

Julius Roger Julius Roger (23 February 1819 – 7 January 1865) was a German Physician, medical doctor, Entomology, entomologist, and Folklore, folklorist who worked in Racibórz, Ratibor, in Upper Silesia, most notable for having arranged (and raised the nec ...

in 1863. In 1933, American entomologist

William Morton Wheeler William Morton Wheeler (March 19, 1865 – April 19, 1937) was an American entomologist, myrmecologist and professor at Harvard University. Biography Early life and education William Morton Wheeler was born on March 19, 1865, to parents Juliu ...

described some subspecies and variants of the banded sugar ant. These subspecies were ''C. consobrinus lividipes'' and ''C. consobrinus nigriceps'', while the variants were ''C. consobrinus var. obniger'' and ''C. consobrinus var. perthianus''. Some of these classifications were short-lived; ''C. consobrinus nigriceps'' was later revived as a full species in 1934 as '' C. nigriceps'', while ''C. consobrinus lividipes'' was synonymised with ''C. consobrinus''. ''C. consobrinus lividipes'' was treated as a subspecies for ''C. nigriceps'' in 1985, now known as ''C. nigriceps lividipes''. In 1996 ''C. consobrinus perthianus'' was synonymised with ''C. nigriceps'', and ''C. consobrinus var. obniger'' was synonymised with ''C. consobrinus''. The specific name is derived from the Latin word ''consobrina'', meaning "cousin". This is in reference to its similar appearance with the species '' C. herculeanus''. The ant is a member of the ''Camponotus nigriceps''

species group In biology, a species complex is a group of closely related organisms that are so similar in appearance and other features that the boundaries between them are often unclear. The taxa in the complex may be able to hybridize readily with each oth ...

, which also includes '' C. clarior'', '' C. dryandrae'', '' C. eastwoodi'', '' C. loweryi'', '' C. longideclivis'', ''C. nigriceps'', '' C. pallidiceps'' and '' C. prostans''. The species is commonly known as the banded sugar ant or sugar ant due to its attraction to sweet food and the orange-brown band that is present on its gaster.

Description

Banded sugar ants appear in different forms, varying from in length, making them a large species. Banded sugar ants are polymorphic, and colonies have two types of workers: minor workers and major workers that have different size ranges. The two castes can be identified easily, due to the workers being smaller and more slender, while the soldiers are larger and more robust. Both castes carry a set of powerful mandibles. Queen ants are the largest ants in the colony. Banded sugar ants come in a large variety of colours, possibly due to ecological rather than genetic influences. For example, humidity, insolation and temperature may all affect the colour of an individual. Female banded sugar ants are easily recognised by their black head, orange

thorax The thorax (: thoraces or thoraxes) or chest is a part of the anatomy of mammals and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main di ...

and the orange-brown band that wraps around their gaster. Males of the species are completely black. The dark sides of the thorax and legs are ferruginous (rusty in colour). The scape (the base of the antenna) and mandibles are black, and the head is wider than the thorax. The thorax is longer than its total width and slightly compressed, and the gaster is covered with tiny black dots. Erect

setae In biology, setae (; seta ; ) are any of a number of different bristle- or hair-like structures on living organisms. Animal setae Protostomes Depending partly on their form and function, protostome setae may be called macrotrichia, chaetae ...

are golden in colour and absent under the head but present on the

mesosoma The mesosoma is the middle part of the body, or tagma, of arthropods whose body is composed of three parts, the other two being the prosoma and the metasoma. It bears the legs, and, in the case of winged insects, the wings. Wasps, bees and a ...

. The setae on the

tibia The tibia (; : tibiae or tibias), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two Leg bones, bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outsi ...

and scape are shorter than those on the mesosoma. The

anterior Standard anatomical terms of location are used to describe unambiguously the anatomy of humans and other animals. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position pro ...

of the gaster is lighter in colour compared to the posterior, and the dorsum of the mesosoma is outlined and curved. A worker's

metanotum The metathorax is the posterior of the three segments in the thorax of an insect, and bears the third pair of legs. Its principal sclerites ( exoskeletal plates) are the metanotum (dorsal), the metasternum ( ventral), and the metapleuron (late ...

is absent and the eyes are bulging, while a soldier's metanotum is noticeable and the eyes are flat. The wings on the queen are dark, and the

stigmata Stigmata (, plural of , 'mark, spot, brand'), in Roman Catholicism, Catholicism, are bodily wounds, scars and pain which appear in locations corresponding to the Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion Five Holy Wounds, wounds of Jesus in Christian ...

and nerves are yellow. While many ant species have a

metapleural gland Metapleural glands (also called metasternal or metathoracic glands) are secretory glands that were considered unique to ants and basal in the evolutionary history of ants. They are responsible for the production of an antibiotic fluid that then col ...

, the gland is not present in the banded sugar ant; the number of

malpighian tubules The Malpighian tubule system is a type of excretory and osmoregulation, osmoregulatory system found in some insects, myriapods, arachnids and tardigrades. It has also been described in some crustacean species, and is likely the same organ as the ...

in workers is 21. The related black-headed sugar ant (''Camponotus nigriceps'') has a similar appearance and may be mistaken for a banded sugar ant. Black-headed sugar ants are lighter in colour than banded sugar ants and the orange-brown band is absent from their gaster.

Distribution and habitat

The banded sugar ant is one of the most widely distributed ants in Australia, but is most commonly found in south-east Australia. It occurs along the north-east coast of

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, from

Charters Towers Charters Towers is a rural town in the Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It is by road south-west from Townsville on the Flinders Highway. During the last quarter of the 19th century, the town boomed as the rich gold deposits und ...

in the north to

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

in the south. The ant is widespread in

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory until 1938, is an internal States and territories of Australia, territory of Australia. Canberra, the capital city of Australia, is situated within the territory, an ...

, Victoria and Tasmania. In

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...

, it is a common household pest in

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

, and populations are mostly found in the south-east of the state while the species is absent in the north-west. The banded sugar ant's presence in

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

has yet to be verified. These ants are found in urban areas,

eucalypt Eucalypt is any woody plant with Capsule (fruit), capsule fruiting bodies belonging to one of seven closely related genera (of the tribe Eucalypteae) found across Australia: ''Eucalyptus'', ''Corymbia'', ''Angophora'', ''Stockwellia'', ''Allosyn ...

forests, dry sclerophyll woodland, grasslands and heaths, preferring a

. In the drier regions of Australia, the banded sugar ant is absent and is usually replaced by ''Camponotus nigriceps''. Banded sugar ants have been recorded from elevations ranging from . Nests are found in a variety of sites, including holes in wood, roots of plants, twigs of trees and shrubs, between rocks, in the soil, and under paving stones. Sometimes, banded sugar ant colonies form small mounds, which are less than in diameter and usually funnel-shaped and

ephemeral Ephemerality (from the Greek word , meaning 'lasting only one day') is the concept of things being transitory, existing only briefly. Academically, the term ephemeral constitutionally describes a diverse assortment of things and experiences, fr ...

. Mounds are not constructed in undisturbed regions where

land degradation Land degradation is a process where land becomes less healthy and productive due to a combination of Human impact on the environment, human activities or natural conditions. The causes for land degradation are numerous and complex. Human activitie ...

has not occurred. Instead, the entrance of a nest consists of a smooth-walled vertical shaft that is in diameter. Chambers in the nest have a similar appearance to the nest entrance (shaft-like walls), and the floors within the chambers are typically in length with an arched roof that is in height. Excavated

nests show that banded sugar ants will also inhabit them.

Behaviour and ecology

Banded sugar ants are the dominant group of

nocturnal Nocturnality is a ethology, behavior in some non-human animals characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite. Nocturnal creatur ...

ants in their range. Workers are mostly encountered at dusk when they are foraging for food on marked trails or on ''

Casuarina ''Casuarina'', also known as she-oak, Australian pine and native pine, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Casuarinaceae, and is native to Australia, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, islands of the western Pacific Ocean, and e ...

'' and ''

Eucalyptus ''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of more than 700 species of flowering plants in the family Myrtaceae. Most species of ''Eucalyptus'' are trees, often Mallee (habit), mallees, and a few are shrubs. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalyp ...

'' trees. These ants also forage during the day, but they are more frequently seen at night. They are also more active during the warmer seasons, especially summer. Banded sugar ants use multiple social techniques to make other ants follow them to a food source; this includes a worker carrying another worker,

tandem running Tandem running is a pair movement coordination observed in ants and termites. In ants, tandem running is used for social learning, by which one ant leads another native ant from the nest to the food source it has found. Tandem running is also use ...

, or simply leaving a pheromone trail to the source. Around 2–35% of foraging workers engage in tandem running. Banded sugar ants will often attack the nests of other ant species at random, while ignoring other ants nearby. They use their mandibles to hold opponents, and use

to kill them. Foraging workers use visual cues to help them find their way around, or to let them determine that they are lost; workers will identify landmarks they are familiar with to orientate themselves. When provoked, an individual banded sugar ant will lift up its abdomen and use its large mandibles to fend off an attacker. If further provoked, it can defend itself by spraying formic acid from its abdomen to deter predators. Meat eater ant feeding on honey

A common competitor of sugar ants are

s, which have been observed blocking banded sugar ant nesting holes with pebbles and soil to prevent them from leaving their nest during the early hours of the day. The ants counter this by preventing meat ants from leaving their nest by blocking their nesting holes with debris, a behaviour known as nest-plugging. If meat ant nests are encroached by trees or other shade, banded sugar ants may invade and take over the nest, since the health of the colony may deteriorate from overshadowing. Members of an affected meat ant colony later move to a nearby satellite nest that is placed in a suitable area, while invading banded sugar ants fill nest galleries up with a black resinous material. In a 1999 study, '' Pogonoscopus myrmex'' leafhoppers were placed in a banded sugar ant colony to test the reaction of non-host ants. These leafhoppers were attacked, suggesting no symbiotic relationship between the two. Starlings have been observed to rub banded sugar ants on their feathers and skin, a behaviour known as anting.

Diet and predators

Banded sugar ants are

omnivores An omnivore () is an animal that regularly consumes significant quantities of both plant and animal matter. Obtaining energy and nutrients from plant and animal matter, omnivores digest carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber, and metabolize t ...

and feed on sweet substances. They tend plant-eating insects such as

s, and feed on the

fluids In physics, a fluid is a liquid, gas, or other material that may continuously move and deform (''flow'') under an applied shear stress, or external force. They have zero shear modulus, or, in simpler terms, are substances which cannot res ...

they secrete. Honeydew secretions are produced from the anus of the aphid, which is later provided to the ants. This behaviour is mutually beneficial to both organisms, as the ants protect the aphids from predation and the aphids provides a nutritious liquid to the ants. Banded sugar ants also tend the larvae of the southern purple azure butterfly ('' Ogyris genoveva''). They are visitors to flowers of ''

Eucalyptus globulus ''Eucalyptus globulus'', commonly known as southern blue gum or blue gum, is a species of flowering plant in the family Myrtaceae. It is a tall, evergreen tree Endemism, endemic to southeastern Australia. This ''Eucalyptus'' species has most ...

'' trees, where they can act as pollinators. They may be seen at night foraging under lights in urban areas for arthropod prey, such as termites and the southern cattle tick ('' Rhipicephalus microplus''). During the night, banded sugar ants are known to "rob" food sources excreted by

Hemiptera Hemiptera (; ) is an order of insects, commonly called true bugs, comprising more than 80,000 species within groups such as the cicadas, aphids, planthoppers, leafhoppers, assassin bugs, bed bugs, and shield bugs. They range in size from ...

insects that are fed on by meat ants during the day. Banded sugar ants and meat ants tend to nest near one another, and areas where the two ants forage have shorter foraging periods due to interference between the species. Banded sugar ants are nocturnal while meat ants are not, so foraging periods are extended by one or two hours if no interference occurs. Banded sugar ants have been found in the feces of the short-beaked echidna (''Tachyglossus aculeatus''), and non-passerine birds are known to predate them. The blackish blindsnake ('' Ramphotyphlops nigrescens'') follows trails laid by banded sugar ants, possibly to locate them as potential prey. Blindsnakes are also known to consume the brood of this species. The Australian ant-slayer spider, '' Euryopis umbilicata'', is a specialist predator of this species, with one study finding 90.6% of the spider's prey to be ''C. consobrinus''.

Nematode The nematodes ( or ; ; ), roundworms or eelworms constitute the phylum Nematoda. Species in the phylum inhabit a broad range of environments. Most species are free-living, feeding on microorganisms, but many are parasitic. Parasitic worms (h ...

s are a parasite to banded sugar ant larvae, as several mermithergate larvae were described. Infected individuals are recognisable by their swollen gasters; for example, uninfected ants measuring in length have a gaster length of while the gaster of infected individuals who are similar in size is . Some specimens collected had gasters so swollen that the intersegmental-membrane was exposed.

Life cycle and reproduction

Like all ants, banded sugar ants begin life as eggs. If the egg is fertilised, the ant becomes a female; if not, it will become a male. They develop through complete metamorphosis, meaning that they pass through a larval and pupal stage before emerging as adults. Although most banded sugar ant colonies are monogynous (a nest that contains a single queen), some have been found to be

polygynous Polygyny () is a form of polygamy entailing the marriage of a man to several women. The term polygyny is from Neoclassical Greek πολυγυνία (); . Incidence Polygyny is more widespread in Africa than in any other continent. Some scholar ...

, where a colony will have multiple queens; this is the fourth ''Camponotus'' species that is recognized as exhibiting polygyny. In polygynous colonies, queens are not territorial and free-mixing of offspring is observed. Despite the homogeneous environmental factors, different family lineages are strongly correlated with ant caste, suggesting caste is largely genetically determined. Nests containing a single queen are

monandrous The stamen (: stamina or stamens) is a part consisting of the male reproductive organs of a flower. Collectively, the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filamen ...

, where a queen will only mate once with a male. Not much is known about their nuptial flight, although virgin queens and males ( alates) were observed mating in South Australia in January; and in early December in Southeast Queensland (2017). This hints that banded sugar ants will mate during mid-summer, and colony foundation occurs at this time. Ideal conditions for nuptial flight is on warm days during the afternoon at temperatures of , which is when the alates begin to swarm. A colony can be long-lived, with queens living for seven years or more. The black carpenter ant ('' Camponotus pennsylvanicus'') is known to adopt larvae and pupae from banded sugar ant colonies. Workers that belong to different matrilines (female ancestry) appear significantly different from each other in size. Matrilines are also said to influence caste determination within the species.

Interaction with humans

The banded sugar ant is considered a household pest and is occasionally seen in houses at night. It is capable of damaging furniture and fittings by chewing the wood. Carbon disulphide can be used to treat and remove a banded sugar ant nest. The ants do not pose any threat to humans, because they are incapable of stinging and can only spray formic acid. However, the larger soldiers can inflict a painful bite with their powerful jaws, and the formic acid they spray is

corrosive Corrosion is a natural process that converts a refined metal into a more chemically stable oxide. It is the gradual deterioration of materials (usually a metal) by chemical or electrochemical reaction with their environment. Corrosion engine ...

to human skin. The eggs of the species were consumed by the

References

Cited text

External links

''Camponotus consobrinus''
in the

Catalogue of Life The Catalogue of Life (CoL) is an online database that provides an index of known species of animals, plants, fungi, and microorganisms. It was created in 2001 as a partnership between the global Species 2000 and the American Integrated Taxono ...

''Camponotus consobrinus''
in the Universal Protein Resource * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Banded sugar ant Camponotus Endemic fauna of Australia Hymenoptera of Australia Insects described in 1842 Household pest insects Taxa named by Wilhelm Ferdinand Erichson