Green Tree Ant

Description:

Green Tree Ants have a green abdomen and yellow-green thorax. They are also known as Weaver Ants as they weave leaves together to form their nest. They are aggressive ants and will inflict a painful bite and squirt formic acid from the tip of their abdomen - they do not sting, though.This is one of weaver ants, where the workers pull the leaves together and seal them using the silk produced by the larvae. The ants will bite when disturbed as they defend their nests. The abdomen may be eaten as bush tucker, taste is not unpleasant, a bit like lime, the larvae may also be eaten or squashed in water to make a refreshing drink. The greenish abdomen has several horizontal ridges on it.

Habitat:

forest

Notes:

Food: They forage on vegetation as well as the ground, often moving in large numbers forming distinct trails. They feed on small animals they come across often taking prey much larger than themselves. They also feed on the sugary secretions from aphids, scale insects, and the caterpillars of some butterfly species, protecting these insects from predators and parasites. Breeding: Green Tree Ants build nests by stitching living tree and shrub leaves together with silk produced by special glands in the larvae. The adult ants do not produce silk. Workers cooperate forming chains to pull the leaves together in position. Other ants bring larvae and gently squeeze them to stimulate silk production. The silk is used to bind the leaves together into the nest. The nest contains several or dozens of leaves providing a well camouflaged shelter. The nest expands as the colony grows and groups of ants leave to form nearby satellite colonies. Most colonies have more than one queen.