Ant Mystery comes to close

salden · Post by **salden** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 4:56 am

If you remember my images about the ants guarding this pod-like thing...well the pod has hatched

Not the best images. They were located on the underside of the leaf and the leaf was low to the ground, a bit of a wind and not much light, but you get the idea.

Anyway, this is my three images for the day, now I will be bored

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 5:00 am

Not bad Sue.

I wonder what those little things are? They sure have big heads on them.

salden · Post by **salden** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 5:02 am

I thought they were baby aphids....

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 5:07 am

Well what ever they are the ants sure are interested in them. They too must secrete some kind of substance like honeydew. Amazing though how something that seems so insignificant can end up spawning a swarm.

salden · Post by **salden** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 5:14 am

Those ants have been guarding these pods for over a month. Always a couple, if not a dozen ants around them at all times.

salden · Post by **salden** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 6:42 am

Come to think of it...aphids give live birth don't they?

beetleman · Post by **beetleman** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 6:46 am

Very very interesting Sue. Here is my observations. In your first pic ( and the other post on the same subject) there looks to be an adult Treehopper, Lower left on the leaf vein, and the little critters look to me to be Treehopper nymphs. I have never read or seen anything about ants doing this kind of behavior with leafhoppers. You have a very cool find here IMO

Your treehopper looks like this one; http://bugguide.net/node/view/174/bgimage?from=168 and I also found this while looking for your treehopper http://bugguide.net/node/view/61655/bgimage They could be the same nymphs only older (need more pictures Sue)
Great job

WOW look how the ants have their jaws open, ready to defend them!!!

beetleman · Post by **beetleman** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 8:18 am

Also found this Sue. http://users.crosspaths.net/~bugs/bugto ... oppers.htm

salden · Post by **salden** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 8:43 am

Thanks for the links. I did a search, but did not find much information. This is some good reading

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 9:54 am

Pretty much the man when it comes down to these bugs, eh Doug?

I would never have guessed that they were tiny hoppers. Gotta hand it to ya, ya did good Doug.

beetleman · Post by **beetleman** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 10:19 am

Ya know what happens, I make a reply and then I do a search, than I come up with some more info, I edited that reply about 8 times, than I stopped in at work (I am off today), did another search, came up with the third link, posted a reply for that link......now my brain is fried dough

. (is it lunch time yet)
If it wasn`t for Sues` super photos of the main event, I would never have learned about any of this myself. "Thank you Sue"

And thank you Ken.

DaveW · Post by **DaveW** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 11:04 am

You shure they are aphids? They look a bit like small wasps to me, but it is a bit hard to tell.

DaveW

salden · Post by **salden** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 11:10 am

DaveW wrote:You shure they are aphids? They look a bit like small wasps to me, but it is a bit hard to tell.

DaveW

I think we narrowed them down to treehopper nymphs. At least Doug found some interesting information that leds to treehopper nymphs.

Gordon C. Snelling · Post by **Gordon C. Snelling** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 3:19 pm

They are indeed nymphal tree/leafhoppers. It is not unusual for ants to tend these as well as aphids as they both do exude "honeydew" The brown object could be an adult, but without a better angle it is difficult to be sure. Great shots. The ants are genus Formica.

Ken Ramos · Post by **Ken Ramos** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 5:21 pm

You know this brings a question to mind. Do these tree/leafhoppers, like some spiders, carry their young in the abdomen until it is time to give birth and then burst open and die thus releasing the young?

I was just noticing the dead adult in the first image.