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Any help with identification is appreciated!!! These ants are red with a black...end. They are all over these white moldy looking things which seem to have either in them or alongside, some sort of grey, scaly little insect or something.
These critters have a symbiotic relationship, played out on the leaves and on the stems of leaves of a Boab Tree (Adansonia gregorii) - see pic 5 - which is along the edge of the water of the Waste Water Wetlands.
It was quite a windy day and it was a lot of fun trying to get any sort of clear shot :D Check out this little video: https://youtu.be/lVYcjtB-ue4 of them going about their business.
Spotted on May 19, 2019
Submitted on May 26, 2019
4 Comments
I believe this could be a species of sugar ant. Which feed on honeydew produced by lerp insects. https://www.backyardbuddies.org.au/fact-...
Ah yes, I can see that in the video now. An interesting relationship. Cool tree too. Boabs are amazing!
Scale insects. Ants sometimes consume their honeydew.
That is an interesting spotting, and the video is awesome too. Do you think the ants were feeding on these cocoon-like structures, or tending to them? And were they carrying the little scaly insects off, or perhaps they have the same sort of relationship as aphids? PS: I also summons the wind when I'm trying to take photos of spiders in their webs.