Harvester ant entrance.

Description:

Ant nest entrance on the side of a path, surrounded by small pebbles. A number of ants were moving in and out of the entrance.

Habitat:

Path through a riparian woods.

Notes:

Harvester ants' nest entrances are often surrounded by a disk of bare ground - sometimes the disk is covered with gravel, sometimes not. If plants grow up inside of the disk of clear ground, the ants will chew at the plants until the plants die. Harvester ants are seed eating ants. Like many of the other Pogonomyrmex harvester ants, they have a powerful sting which they are not shy about using. Their sting is quite painful and best avoided. In the evening, a few workers will usually seal the nest entrance with gravel and twigs to keep nighttime intruders out of the nest. Often one or two of the workers will end up on the outside of the nest entrance after closing it.