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Harvester Ant Queen; Reina de Hormiga Granera

Messor barbarus

Description:

Messor barbarus is an ant species in the subfamily Myrmicinae that feeds on seeds. Their waist consists of two isolated segments (petiole and pospeciolo), consisting of the second and third abdominal segments; This is a characteristic feature of the subfamily Myrmicinae. Their jaws are more or less triangular, and toothed in the masticator edge. The ants spend the warm season collecting grass seeds to store them in their underground storehouses. Workers are small and proportionate, completely black, with slightly reddish head, while the soldiers are somewhat larger and have huge deep red heads equipped with huge jaws; crush the beans with them and create a paste that serves to feed the larvae. Queens exceed centimeter of size and have head and reddish underparts, while males who do not reach the 6 mm, are completely black.

Habitat:

Evergreen oak forest.

Notes:

Camera Model: NIKON D300. Exposure Time: 1/400 sec.; f/10; ISO Speed Rating: 1000. Exposure Bias: 0 EV. Focal Length: 300.0 mm. No flash fired

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arlanda
Spotted by
arlanda

Madrid, Comunidad de Madrid, Spain

Spotted on Oct 17, 2014
Submitted on Feb 16, 2015

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