Friends in My Garden- 16

Weaver Ants

A Weaver Ant

My garden is teeming with activities of many types of ants. Today I have the Weaver ants (Oecophylla smaragdina) for you.

Weaver ants are arboreal and build their unique nests, where workers construct nests by weaving together leaves using larval silk. There is a division of labour associated with the size difference between workers; larger workers forage for insects and aggressively defend the colony, whereas minor workers stay within the nests and care for the larvae.

Weaver ants can inflict painful bites and often spray formic acid that causes irritation.

This pair was curious about my presence

Making of a nest…

And the nest!