Asian Weaver Ant Queen

Description:

Formicidae; Formicinae; Oecophylla; Oecophylla smaragdina (Fabricius, 1775). This spotting is a follow-up on the four spottings listed in Notes below. The first four photos (taken on July 14) show that a second queen has moved to the slightly more sheltered lower leaf. Pics #1 & #2 (taken at 12:18 p.m.) show that the queen remaining on the upper leaf is much more exposed to the severe weather conditions. The rains were becoming heavier, by the minute, as the tropical depression came closer to our part of the Philippines and I marveled at the resilience of these ants. Pics #3 & #4 (taken at 12:44 p.m.) show that whilst the two queens on the lower leaf seemed relatively calm and in control of their situation, the unfortunate upper queen was now pretty much living in a water fall and, at that point, I felt that this might not end well. The conditions deteriorated to such an extent, in the afternoon, that I could not go out and take any more photos until the next morning (July 15). Pic #5 (8:21 a.m.) I was astonished and delighted to see all three of the queens together on the lower leaf. The storm had abated slightly and I began to think that the worst was over. However, it seemed that there were slightly fewer larvae than previously. So, I had a fleeting thought about the possibility that the queens might be moving their brood to a safer position, but put it out of my mind, dismissing it as nonsense. Pic #6 (12:56 p.m.) You can perhaps imagine my shock when I returned and saw only five remaining larvae on the lower leaf. All the other members of the brood were gone and so were the three queens. What had happened? I don’t know. I looked all over the small tree and on the ground until the rain became heavy again and I had to abandon my search. I intend to return again tomorrow, weather permitting, to try and find out what has happened. Is this the result of a predator attack? If so, why would the predator leave behind a few tasty morsels. Have the queens carried out some kind of evacuation to a safer place and were the remaining larvae rescued after I left the scene? I will try to find out tomorrow.

Habitat:

These Asian Weaver Ant Queens were spotted in our backyard on a young Citrus sp.

Notes:

https://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/95... https://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/97... https://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/16... https://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/15...