Pheidole

A pheidologist and his exploration of a hyperdiverse myrmicine clade

  • Some notes on combat behavior of Pheidole megacephala

    Some notes on combat behavior of Pheidole megacephala

    I have been monitoring and studying a small Pheidole megacephala cluster the last month, and during that time was present during three instances of direct aggression between it and another species. I will add here a few notes on what I have observed during those three instances. (1) The main tactic of PM is one…

  • Pheidole megacephala: An Opportunity to Observe Territorial Behavior Part Deux

    Pheidole megacephala: An Opportunity to Observe Territorial Behavior Part Deux

    A few weeks back, I mapped the control of an island using baits of cookies placed along the borders of the island. The island was mostly controlled by the P. megacephala, but some baits were taken over by a small Pheidole sp, Solenopsis invicta, and a Crematogaster sp. (see image 1 below). Three weeks later,…

  • The Empire Strikes Back Part Deux: Solenopsis invicta invasion

    The Empire Strikes Back Part Deux: Solenopsis invicta invasion

    The first part of this ongoing saga is here. Pics were taken at dusk, so may not be optimal. At dusk I returned and the Pheidole megacephala (PM) were trying to reform the trail (line) it had from the north to the node located under the vegetation (see Image 2). A line of PM from…

  • The Empire Strikes Back: Invading Solenopsis invicta Fire Ants

    The Empire Strikes Back: Invading Solenopsis invicta Fire Ants

    I have been studying and observing a nearby Pheidole megacephala cluster, which occupies an irregular area of around 1.1 ha. I usually come early in the morning (around 630 am), when the colony is starting to wind down due to the incoming heat, and then check again at dusk, when the ants start slowly pushing…

  • Pheidole megacephala: An Opportunity to Observe Territorial Behavior

    Pheidole megacephala: An Opportunity to Observe Territorial Behavior

    Over the past 2 weeks or so, I have been delineating the borders of a small Pheidole megacephala cluster at a fine level of detail. The overall area covered by the species is around 1.1 ha, and I had been paying particular attention to the periphery of their control, where the density of P. megacephala…

  • Remnants of Predation or Scavenging Loot?

    Remnants of Predation or Scavenging Loot?

    A colony of the tiny ant Cardiocondyla minutior showed up near a colony of Pheidole that I had been photographing. Over the course of days and weeks, the Pheidole colony, which had been fairly constant when it came to showing up at baits, started to disappear. The few foragers still around discovered the baits, but…