page_title: Black-headed sugar ant
section_title: Behaviour and ecology
hierarchical_section_title: Black-headed sugar ant / Behaviour and ecology
caption_attribution_description: Orgyris genoveva pupae with attending ants
context_page_description: The black-headed sugar ant, also known as the brown sugar ant, is a species of Formicinae ant endemic to Australia. Found throughout most states, the species is a member of the genus Camponotus, a cosmopolitan genus of ants commonly known as carpenter ants. It was formally described and named by British entomologist Frederick Smith in 1858. These ants are characterised by their black head, reddish-brown mesosoma and black gaster, which can change in colour.
  The species is polymorphic: workers and soldiers measure 6 to 12 millimetres and males are 12 millimetres. The queens are the largest members of the colony, measuring 16 millimetres. Colonies dwell in dry regions, including open areas or in dry sclerophyll woodland, where they nest in soil, large mounds or under stones. Nuptial flight occurs in summer and nests can hold several thousand individuals. Considered a household pest, black-headed sugar ants feed on sweet foods and insects and tend to butterfly larvae. Numerous birds and fish prey on these ants.
context_section_description: Black-headed sugar ants are nocturnal foragers of food. The species is sometimes considered a household pest since ants can enter human homes at night in search of food. During the day, these ants are not active and have exhibited sleep-like behaviours until it is night. The black-headed sugar ant predominantly feeds on sweet secretions and sugar water; insects and a variety of foodstuffs in human homes are also consumed.
  Workers use several social techniques during colony movements to other nest sites or to lead others to food sources, which includes a worker carrying another worker, tandem running or laying down a pheromone trail for orientation. They are also attendants to the butterflies Ogyris idmo and Ogyris genoveva. The larvae will reside in underground areas constructed by attending ants, and during the night they will emerge with them and feed on mistletoe leaves. The species is tolerant to myrmecophiles; the beetles Ctenisophus morosus and Cryptodus paradoxus have been found in nests, and the wingless cricket  Myrmecophilus australis also dwells inside colonies. Other insects which dwell inside nests include froghoppers in the family Cercopidae.
  Several birds and other predatory organisms prey on the black-headed sugar ant. Birds such as the black-faced woodswallow, rufous treecreeper, noisy miner, jacky winter and southern scrub robin prey on this species, as indicated by the fact that workers body parts have been found in the birds' stomach contents. Other predators of the black-headed sugar ant include the rainbow trout.
  Nuptial flight most likely begins during summer, as a young mated queen with no brood was found in a freshly built chamber in January. During the early years of colony foundation, there are more soldiers, and older colonies may have a workforce consisting only of minor workers. A typical colony may contain five to seven thousand individuals. Queens of the species can live for an exceptionally long time; wild queens can live for up to 21 years with one known captive living to 23 years of age, making it the second oldest recorded ant queen. Larvae of this species can grow to be quite large; collected larvae reach lengths of 16.4 millimetres (0.65 in).
caption: Major workers attending to Ogyris genoveva pupae
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