Volume 45, Number 4,
July 1999: Carpenter Ants

Text-only version

ISSUE HOME PAGE

ABOUT THIS ISSUE
- about KSN
- about the authors

IN THIS ISSUE

Section 1:
- introduction
- what is a carpenter ant?

Section 2:
- life cycle
- colony size

Section 3:
- how carpenter ants find their way around

Section 4:
- feeding habits
- optimizing feeding
- territorial ants go to war
- avoiding war

Section 5:
- why active at night?
- ecological value of carpenter ants

Section 6:
- surviving winter
- destroying wood
- contrast between termites and carpenter ants

- References

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Carpenter Ants
by John H. Klotz, Laurel D. Hansen, Byron L. Reid and Stephen A. Klotz

Carpenter ants are some of themost fascinating of all ants.Entomologists have studied many aspects of their life and discovered important relationships which carpenter ants have with other living organisms including humans. The primary role carpenter ants play in our North American forest ecosystems is only beginning to be appreciated.

WHAT IS A CARPENTER ANT?

Carpenter ants belong to the large genus of ants, Camponotus, which is distributed worldwide in tropical and temperate regions.  The common name, carpenter ant, is derived from the preference of some of the more notable Camponotus species to excavate nestsHowever, most species of Camponotus are not “carpenters” at all, preferring to nest under rocks, in the soil,  or in living or dead non-woody plants.

The first North American ant ever to be described scientifically was the black carpenter ant.  In 1773, Baron Carl DeGeer, a student of the great Swedish botanist Linnaeus, described Formica pennsylvanica, now known as Camponotus pennsylvanicus (DeGeer).  This ant is common in the eastern half of the United States (Figure 1), and though large and conspicuous, it goes unnoticed because of its nocturnal lifestyle.  Nocturnal living likely arose in response to competition from other ants and predation by birds.  Birds, except for owls, are active in daytime.

Figure 1. Economically important species of carpenter ants and their North American geographic distribution.

Although carpenter ants are common insects in woodland habitats and often go unnoticed, their activities have far-reaching effects on forest communities and humans.  Their social behaviors, such as group foraging and food sharing, support large colonies which by virtue of the queen ant’s longevity, make them permanent residents of forests.Among the many species of ants, the carpenter ants stand out in forest ecosystems as the dominant insect. Their predation on other insects affects the population dynamics and distribution of the species they prey upon, and their nesting habits initiate the degradation process of tree cellulose (Figure 2) to a form usable by other plants and animals.Thus, in the ecological web of forest life, carpenter ants play a critical role in the biological control of forests insects and the recycling of organic and inorganic nutrients. 

Figure 2. Camponotus modoc starts the recycling process in a forest in Washington.  This dead tree is being cored out by a colony of carpenter ants.