This species has a large head with long hairs on its chin that aid in removing soil during excavation in the ground. The nest is generally a low flat crater in sandy soil. Workers seal the nest entrances at night and reopen them in the morning. These ants gather seeds, which are stored in the nests, the entrances to which are frequently surrounded by husks. If water gets into the seed areas, the ants will move the seeds to keep them dry, and after a rain they may carry the seeds to the surface to dry.
Harvester ants can bite and sting.
The sting can produce a red, painful inflammation which lasts several days. The cochineal lives on prickly pear and similar cacti in the southern part of the US and south into Central and South America. Area species include D. opuntiae and D. confusus and are responsible for the white waxy lumps on local prickly pear. A similar species, D. coccus , was a source of red dye for Mexican Indians for centuries before arrival of the Spaniards. Because of its superior color and durability, it became commercially important, and the cactus-insect combination was raised in the Mediterranean and elsewhere for dye use until synthetic dyes were developed in the last century.